Sidneyova Obrana básnictví jako strategie vyrovnání s antickými a kontinentálními vzory // Sidney’s The Defence of Poesy as a strategy of dealing with ancient and continental examples

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martina Kastnerová

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The study deals with the main tenets of Philip Sidney’s poetics on the basis of his The Defence of Poesy and his poetry (mainly Astrophil and Stella in the context of Elizabethan considerations of the classical aesthetic concepts (especially that of Aristotle and Horace and some of the Renaissance continental examples. Sidney’s Defence of Poesy represents a fundamental step in establishing poetry as the creator of its own world, its so–called second nature, and points out the poetry’s ability to create figures and imitate reality; thus the main value of poetry lies in creating clear rhetorical images of moral truth. So Sidney’s poetics plays an important role in establishing English poetry as a device of the national cultural and social independence.

Uus Eesti disain / Silvia Pärmann

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Pärmann, Silvia

2016-01-01

Allan Prooso, Argo Männiku ja Kalmer Alliku (HOOG) disainitud riiulid. Liis Lindmaa ja Anatoli Tafitšuki disainitud kassimaja Juno. Anni Varmi puidust lõikelauad, Toivo Raidmetsa tool Arike, Maria Kalmu vineerist prossid, Jaanus Orgusaare kapp Rolling. Merili Sule ja Petrica Artene (StenCilit) disainitud seinašabloonid. Merlin Tiiveli (NION design) käsitsi valmistatud sisustuaksessuaarid (korvid, vaibad, kott-toolid). Margus Triibmanni toolvalgusti Cranberry, Stella Soomlaisi naturaalsest nahast käekotid. Kristjan Rabi, Janno Roodi, Veljo Viikanti (Aegaon) disainitud käekellad. Mari Saani, Mariana Laane (stuudio Nüüd) keraamika. Silver Tibbingi pakendikujundused Sõsara kosmeetikatoodetele, Elena Volki ja Eveliis Salaka Helge Kodu ruumiparfüümid. Kerly Kaljuste ja Anu Rajamäe (KOOSdisain) kodutekstiilid. Meelis Undi ja Mari Otsa (WolfBerry) lastemööbel

Pianeti tra le note appunti di un astronomo divulgatore

CERN Document Server

Adamo, Angelo

2010-01-01

Una stella, otto pianeti, un centinaio di lune e una miriade di corpi minori tra plutini, asteroidi, comete, satelliti artificiali. E per ognuno di questi oggetti, spiegazioni scientifiche che condividono la scena con narrazioni dettate dal mito, con visioni della fanstascienza e con suggestioni sonore scaturite dalla penna di grandi compositori. L'autore prova a districarsi nella babele di idiomi più o meno precisi che da sempre vengono usati dagli uomini per descrivere il Sistema Solare nell'intento di spiegarlo e di rendere il freddo spazio interplanetario un posto più accogliente. La letteratura, la fisica, il fumetto, l'illustrazione, la musica finalmente cooperano per delineare un possibile percorso, una traiettoria fra le tante, che condurrà il lettore dalle origini del linguaggio fino alla nube di Oort.

Synthesis, characterization, and chemical bonding analysis of the lithium alkaline-earth metal gallide nitrides Li{sub 2}(Ca{sub 3}N){sub 2}[Ga{sub 4}] and Li{sub 2}(Sr{sub 3}N){sub 2}[Ga{sub 4}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pathak, Manisha; Bobnar, Matej; Ormeci, Alim; Hoehn, Peter [Chemische Metallkunde, Max-Planck-Institut fuer Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Dresden (Germany); Stoiber, Dominik; Niewa, Rainer [Institut fuer Anorganische Chemie, Universitaet Stuttgart (Germany); Ovchinnikov, Alexander [Chemische Metallkunde, Max-Planck-Institut fuer Chemische Physik fester Stoffe, Dresden (Germany); Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, DE (United States)

2017-11-17

Large single crystals of Li{sub 2}(Ca{sub 3}N){sub 2}[Ga{sub 4}] and Li{sub 2}(Sr{sub 3}N){sub 2}[Ga{sub 4}] up to several mm in size were grown from mixtures of the respective elements and binary alkaline-earth metal nitrides in reactive lithium melts employing a modified high-temperature centrifugation-aided filtration (HTCAF) technique. The main structural features of these isotypic phases are stella quadrangula building units [Ga{sub 4}]Li{sub 4/2} and octahedra (Nae{sub 6/2}), which form two independent interpenetrating networks. The phases crystallize in the η-carbide structure and represent diamagnetic small bandgap semiconductors. Real-space chemical bonding analysis indicates predominantly ionic bonding. (copyright 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

The stars and the birds in a school life

Science.gov (United States)

Jokin, Ivo

2010-05-01

The Stars in a School s Life Astroparty is held every year and its 6st edition was held in this year. Owing to it a lot of new Astronomy clubs are built up at regional level; the party itself rouses interest in Astronomy as a science and as a subject in school as well.When taking part in the party students get more skills both in theory itself and in making watching experiments of space. They learn how to analize and describe such experiments. These activities are not held at schools competitions in Astronomy. The party itself gives a lot of possibilities for carrying out a variety of methodical activities with Physics and Astronomy teachers. We think that this is the way of joining of the children to natural sciences and mastering of sound knowledge and skills. Another important idea of Astro Party is the integration of astronomy with biology, in particular ecology - use of the telescopes for observation of water-floating and water-loving birds. Aims: - Rising students, interest in Astronomy and watching space; - Providing a suitable environment for developing teachers and students creative and intellectual skills; - Exchange of teaching experience. Work , style and methods: innovation methods, team work, workshop, students that proved to be good in Astronomy teach their classmates beginners. The Birds in a School's Life http://www.stella-science.eu/pool_good_practices.php This eBook ‘Science Education in European Schools - Selected Practices from the STELLA Catalogue' provides a sample of selected practices, collected in the scope of the European Lifelong Learning Programme. Project STELLA (Science Teaching in a Lifelong Learning Approach) in order to support educational authorities, school heads and science teachers in fostering and adopting innovative practices in science education. INITIATIVE The aim of the initiative is that of raising young people's interest in learning about the nature of local birdlife including waterfowl as well as those of the

A STELLA model to estimate soil CO2 emissions from a short-rotation woody crop

Science.gov (United States)

Ying Ouyang; Theodor D. Leininger; Jeff Hatten; Prem B. Parajuli

2012-01-01

The potential for climatic factors as well as soil–plant–climate interactions to change as a result of rising levels of atmospheric CO2 concentration is an issue of increasing international environmental concern. Agricultural and forest practices and managements may be important contributors to mitigating elevated atmospheric CO2...

La regla de conflicto y la definición de los puntos de conexión

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruben Santos Belandro

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Hace ya algunas décadas la Profesora Stella Córdoba escribía un artículo profusamente consultado por estudiantes y operadores jurídicos, que se centraba sobre la definición y el alcance del punto de conexión domicilio, cuando éste es utilizado por la regla de conflicto de leyes o de jurisdicciones.Hoy creemos oportuno volver a visitar el tema por dos motivos: uno de ellos es el deseo de constatar si en un mundo cada vez más complejo como el que vivimos, el análisis realizadopor la colega en los comienzos de los ’90 continúa inalterado y, el otro, ampliar el espectro del estudio y examinar igualmente otros puntos de conexión igualmente importantes.

Collapse transition of self-avoiding walks on a square lattice in the bulk and near a linear wall: The universality classes of the θ and θ' points

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang, I.; Meirovitch, H.

1993-01-01

Using the scanning method we study by extensive simulations the θ transition of self-avoiding walks with nearest-neighbor attractions in the bulk and near a linear wall on a square lattice. Consistent results for the two models are obtained for the radius of gyration, but not for the end-to-end distance. Our results for the exponents ν and γ agree with those derived by Duplantier and Saleur [Phys. Rev. Lett. 59, 539 (1987)] for the θ' model. However, our results for the crossover exponent φ (which constitute upper bounds for the correct value) are significantly larger than the value of φ(θ'). At the ordinary point our result for γ 1 is larger (even though not much) than the value suggested by Vanderzande, Stella, and Seno [Phys. Rev. Lett. 67, 2757 (1991)] for the θ' model

Retinoic acid combined with spermatogonial stem cell conditions facilitate the generation of mouse germ-like cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dong, Guoyi; Shang, Zhouchun; Liu, Longqi

2017-01-01

Spermatogenic lineage has been directly generated in spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) conditions from human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs). However, it remains unknown whether mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) can directly differentiate into advanced male germ cell lineage in the same conditions. Here......, we showed rather low efficiency of germ-like cell generation from mouse ESCs in SSC conditions. Interestingly, addition of retinoic acid (RA) into SSC conditions enabled efficient differentiation of mouse ESCs into germ-like cells, as shown by the activation of spermatogenesis-associated genes...... such as Mvh, Dazl, Prdm14, Stella, Scp1, Scp3, Stra8 and Rec8. In contrast, for cells cultured in control medium, the activation of the above genes barely occurred. In addition, RA with SSC conditions yielded colonies of Acrosin-expressing cells and the positive ratio reached a peak at day 6. Our work thus...

What does it means to be a critical scholar? A metalogue between science education doctoral students

Science.gov (United States)

Cian, Heidi; Dsouza, Nikeetha; Lyons, Renee; Alston, Daniel

2017-06-01

This manuscript is written in response to Lydia Burke and Jesse Bazzul's article Locating a space of criticality as new scholars in science education. As doctoral students finding our place in the culture of science education, we respond by discussing our journeys towards the development of a scholarly identity, with particular focus on whether or how we see ourselves as critical scholars. Since each of us authoring this paper has a different perspective, a metalogue format is utilized to ensure all of our voices and journeys are represented. We use the Burke and Bazzul article as a platform for conversations about challenges faced for emerging scholars in the field of science education and explore how we see our role in responding to these challenges. Specifically, we discuss the barriers to publication, dissemination of research to practitioners, and how to approach these problems from a grounding in critical theory. As a result of our conversations, we conclude that there is a need to reshape the field of science education to invite more unorthodox research perspectives, methodologies, and publication formats. To do so, the issues we explore require a continued conversation between emerging scholars, practicing researchers, and practicing educators.

Rotation and magnetic activity of the Hertzsprung-gap giant 31 Comae

Science.gov (United States)

Strassmeier, K. G.; Granzer, T.; Kopf, M.; Weber, M.; Küker, M.; Reegen, P.; Rice, J. B.; Matthews, J. M.; Kuschnig, R.; Rowe, J. F.; Guenther, D. B.; Moffat, A. F. J.; Rucinski, S. M.; Sasselov, D.; Weiss, W. W.

2010-09-01

Context. The single rapidly-rotating G0 giant 31 Comae has been a puzzle because of the absence of photometric variability despite its strong chromospheric and coronal emissions. As a Hertzsprung-gap giant, it is expected to be at the stage of rearranging its moment of inertia, hence likely also its dynamo action, which could possibly be linked with its missing photospheric activity. Aims: Our aim is to detect photospheric activity, obtain the rotation period, and use it for a first Doppler image of the star's surface. Its morphology could be related to the evolutionary status. Methods: We carried out high-precision, white-light photometry with the MOST satellite, ground-based Strömgren photometry with automated telescopes, and high-resolution optical echelle spectroscopy with the new STELLA robotic facility. Results: The MOST data reveal, for the first time, light variations with a full amplitude of 5 mmag and an average photometric period of 6.80 ± 0.06 days. Radial-velocity variations with a full amplitude of 270 m s-1 and a period of 6.76 ± 0.02 days were detected from our STELLA spectra, which we also interpret as due to stellar rotation. The two-year constancy of the average radial velocity of +0.10 ± 0.33 km s-1 confirms the star's single status, as well as the membership in the cluster Melotte 111. A spectrum synthesis gives Teff = 5660 ± 42 K, log g = 3.51 ± 0.09, and [Fe/H] = -0.15 ± 0.03, which together with the revised Hipparcos distance, suggests a mass of 2.6 ± 0.1 M_⊙ and an age of ≈540 Myr. The surface lithium abundance is measured to be nearly primordial. A detection of a strong He i absorption line indicates nonradiative heating processes in the atmosphere. Our Doppler images show a large, asymmetric polar spot, cooler than Teff by ≈1600 K, and several small low-to-mid latitude features that are warmer by ≈300-400 K and are possibly of chromospheric origin. We computed the convective turnover time for 31 Com as a function of depth

Red cherries (Prunus avium var. Stella) processed by pulsed electric field - Physical, chemical and microbiological analyses.

Science.gov (United States)

Sotelo, Kristine A G; Hamid, Nazimah; Oey, Indrawati; Pook, Chris; Gutierrez-Maddox, Noemi; Ma, Qianli; Ying Leong, Sze; Lu, Jun

2018-02-01

This study examined, for the first time, the effect of mild or moderate intensity pulsed electric field (PEF) processing on cherries, in particular changes in physicochemical properties, release of anthocyanins and polyphenols, and the potential growth of lactic acid bacteria. Cherry samples were treated at a constant pulse frequency of 100Hz and a constant pulse width of 20μs with different electric field strengths between 0.3 and 2.5kV/cm. Titratable acidity and total soluble solids values of most PEF samples stored for 24h significantly decreased compared to other samples. Stored samples also had increased cyanidin glucoside content. However, concentration of rutin, 4-hydroxybenzoic acid and isorhamnetin rutinoside significantly decreased in samples stored for 24h. In conclusion, sweet cherries were only influenced by storage after PEF processing. PEF processing did not affect the growth of probiotic bacteria. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Publisher Correction: Embryonic defects induced by maternal obesity in mice derive from Stella insufficiency in oocytes.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Longsen; Ren, Chao; Li, Ling; Li, Xiaoyan; Ge, Juan; Wang, Haichao; Miao, Yi-Liang; Guo, Xuejiang; Moley, Kelle H; Shu, Wenjie; Wang, Qiang

2018-05-01

In the version of this article originally published, the positions of Wenjie Shu and Qiang Wang in the author list were reversed and incorrect images were displayed in the HTML for Supplementary Figs. 1-12. The errors have been corrected in the HTML and PDF versions of the article.

Fossil shell emission in dying radio loud AGNs

Science.gov (United States)

Kino, M.; Ito, H.; Kawakatu, N.; Orienti, M.; Nagai, H.; Wajima, K.; Itoh, R.

2016-02-01

We investigate shell emission associated with dying radio loud AGNs. First, based on our recent work by Ito et al. (2015), we describe the dynamical and spectral evolution of shells after stopping the jet energy injection. We find that the shell emission overwhelms that of the radio lobes soon after stopping the jet energy injection because fresh electrons are continuously supplied into the shell via the forward shock, while the radio lobes rapidly fade out without jet energy injection. We find that such fossil shells can be a new class of target sources for SKA telescope. Next, we apply the model to the nearby radio source 3C84. Then, we find that the fossil shell emission in 3C84 is less luminous in the radio band while it is bright in the TeV γ-ray band and can be detectable by CTA. Data from STELLA

The magnetic field and the evolution of element spots on the surface of the HgMn eclipsing binary ARAur

Science.gov (United States)

Hubrig, S.; Savanov, I.; Ilyin, I.; González, J. F.; Korhonen, H.; Lehmann, H.; Schöller, M.; Granzer, T.; Weber, M.; Strassmeier, K. G.; Hartmann, M.; Tkachenko, A.

2010-10-01

The system ARAur is a young late B-type double-lined eclipsing binary with a primary star of HgMn peculiarity. We applied the Doppler imaging method to reconstruct the distribution of Fe and Y over the surface of the primary using spectroscopic time series obtained in 2005 and from 2008 October to 2009 February. The results show a remarkable evolution of the element distribution and overabundances. Measurements of the magnetic field with the moment technique using several elements reveal the presence of a longitudinal magnetic field of the order of a few hundred gauss in both stellar components and a quadratic field of the order of 8kG on the surface of the primary star. Based on observations obtained at the 2.56-m Nordic Optical Telescope on La Palma, the Karl-Schwarzschild-Observatorium in Tautenburg and the STELLA robotic telescope on Tenerife. E-mail: shubrig@aip.de

Scientific Information Policy Board 90th Meeting

CERN Multimedia

AUTHOR|(CDS)2051371

2017-01-01

Gigi Rolandi, sitting in the middle, chairing his last meeting of the Scientific Information Policy Board before his retirement. Rolandi was the chairman of the board from March 2006 until April 2017, a period that has seen lots of dynamics within the field of authoring, publishing and librarianship - both at CERN and beyond. In the first row from left to right: Eckhard Elsen (Director of Research), Jens Vigen (Head Librarian) Gigi Rolandi (SIPB Chair), Anita Hollier (Archivist) and Urs Wiedemann (Theory). In the second row from left to right: Nikos Kasioumis (Invited speaker), Alexander Kohls (Invited speaker), Stella Christodoulaki (Invited speaker), Nick Ellis (Chair CREB), Clara Troncon (ACCU), Annette Holtkamp (Scientific Information Service), Tim Smith (IT) Brigitte Bloch-Devaux (non-LHC experiments), Constantinos Loizides (ALICE), Thierry Stora (Engineering), John Jowett (Beams), Arjan Verweij (Technology), Anne Gentil-Beccot (Scientific Information Service), Fergus Wilson (LHCb), Ludmila Marian (Invit...

CEA and its radioactive wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marano, S.

1999-01-01

CEA annually produces about 3500 tons of radioactive wastes in its 43 basic nuclear installations. CEA ranks third behind EDF and Cogema. Low-level wastes (A wastes) are sent to ANDRA (national agency for the management of nuclear wastes)whereas medium-level wastes (B wastes) are stored by CEA itself. CEA has checked off its storing places and has set up an installation Cedra to process and store ancient and new nuclear wastes. 3 other installations are planned to operate within 6 years: Agate (Cadarache) will treat liquid effluents, Stella (Saclay) will process liquid wastes that are beta or gamma emitters, and Atena (Marcoule) will treat and store radioactive sodium coming from Phenix reactor and IPSN laboratories. The use of plasma torch for vitrifying wastes is detailed, the management of all the nuclear wastes produced by CEA laboratories and installations is presented. (A.C.)

Spatial root distribution of plants growing in vertical media for use in living walls

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Lars; Dresbøll, Dorte Bodin; Thorup-Kristensen, Kristian

2014-01-01

Background and Aims: For plants growing in living walls, the growth potential is correlated to the roots ability to utilize resources in all parts of the growing medium and thereby to the spatial root distribution. The aim of the study was to test how spatial root distribution was affected...... root growth was limited for plants in the middle or lower parts of the medium and 15N measurements confirmed that only plants in the bottom of the box had active roots in the bottom of the medium. The species differed in root architecture and spatial root distribution. Conclusions: The choice...... by growing medium, planting position and competition from other plants. Methods: Five species (Campanula poscharskyana cv. 'Stella', Fragaria vesca cv. 'Småland', Geranium sanguineum cv. 'Max Frei', Sesleria heufleriana and Veronica officinalis cv. 'Allgrün') were grown in three growing media (coir and two...

Evaluadores del Número

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

. .

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Evaluadores extranjerosMartha Lilia de Alba González, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana – Iztapalapa, MéxicoAdriana Piscitelli, Universidad Estadual de Campinas, BrasilAna Paula Mendes de Miranda, Universidad Federal Fluminense, BrasilAngela Nunes, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, PortugalAna Maria R. Gomes, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, BrasilJuan Luis Sariego Rodríguez, Escuela Nacional de Antropología e Historia, MéxicoEvaluadores nacionalesJosé Garriga Zucal, Universidad Nacional de San MartínCarlos Figari, Universidad de Buenos AiresMaría Cristina Cravino, Universidad Nacional de General SarmientoStella Maris García, Universidad Nacional de la PlataAna Wortman, Universidad de Buenos AiresAndrea Mastrángelo, Universidad Nacional de Misiones Ilustración de Tapa Prometeo,1985, acrílico sobre tela,120x160cm.Ernesto Deira, Artista Plástico

Theatre

CERN Multimedia

Théâtre les 50

2010-01-01

MARIONNETTES Compagnie Stella Rossa   Dimanche 12 décembre à 15h et 17h Costanza Solari vient enchanter les grands et les petits à partir de 3 ans avec 4 histoires   Séance de 15 heures : « Une histoire de feu, une histoire de chaleur, une histoire de dragon » Il faut vite faire quelque chose pour réchauffer une grand-mère qui a froid. Après avoir tout essayé, la seule solution pour Mia sera de trouver un dragon qui veuille bien lui céder un peu de son feu… « La princesse et la balle d’or » Il arriva que la balle d’or, au lieu de revenir dans sa main, tomba sur le sol et roula tout droit dans l’eau. La princesse la suivit des yeux, mais la balle disparut : la fontaine était si profonde qu’on n’en voyait pas le fond… Séance de 17 heures : « N...

Seis nuevas inscripciones latinas de la Muralla de Segovia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan SANTOS YANGUAS

2009-10-01

Full Text Available RESUMEN: En este artículo damos a conocer seis nuevas inscripciones latinas de la mutalla de Segovia. Se trata de cuatro estelas de granito y dos bloques de caliza. Estas inscripciones están muy deterioradas y hemos utilizado para leerlas papel-aluminio, en el cual, al contacto con la piedra, quedan impresas las letras. Unicamente está completa, aunque borrada en parte, una de ellas, de la cual ofrecemos el testimonio de dos fotografías.ABSTRACT: In this article are published six new roman inscriptions from the wall at Segovia. They are four granite stellae and two limestone blocks. As all they are very damaged it was necessary to use a sheet of aluminium-paper; when the sheet is pressed over the stone-surface, the few traces of the letters are more easier to be read. Two fotogtaphs illustrate on the only inscription which is wholy conserved, being its icxt unfortunately partly disappeared.

Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA): Convective Boundaries, Element Diffusion, and Massive Star Explosions

Science.gov (United States)

Paxton, Bill; Schwab, Josiah; Bauer, Evan B.; Bildsten, Lars; Blinnikov, Sergei; Duffell, Paul; Farmer, R.; Goldberg, Jared A.; Marchant, Pablo; Sorokina, Elena; Thoul, Anne; Townsend, Richard H. D.; Timmes, F. X.

2018-02-01

We update the capabilities of the software instrument Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA) and enhance its ease of use and availability. Our new approach to locating convective boundaries is consistent with the physics of convection, and yields reliable values of the convective-core mass during both hydrogen- and helium-burning phases. Stars with Meffects of Rayleigh-Taylor instabilities that, in combination with the coupling to a public version of the STELLA radiation transfer instrument, creates new avenues for exploring Type II supernova properties. These capabilities are exhibited with exploratory models of pair-instability supernovae, pulsational pair-instability supernovae, and the formation of stellar-mass black holes. The applicability of MESA is now widened by the capability to import multidimensional hydrodynamic models into MESA. We close by introducing software modules for handling floating point exceptions and stellar model optimization, as well as four new software tools - MESA-Web, MESA-Docker, pyMESA, and mesastar.org - to enhance MESA's education and research impact.

Ecological multiplex interactions determine the role of species for parasite spread amplification.

Science.gov (United States)

Stella, Massimo; Selakovic, Sanja; Antonioni, Alberto; Andreazzi, Cecilia

2018-04-23

Despite their potential interplay, multiple routes of many disease transmissions are often investigated separately. As an unifying framework for understanding parasite spread through interdependent transmission paths, we present the 'ecomultiplex' model, where the multiple transmission paths among a diverse community of interacting hosts are represented as a spatially explicit multiplex network. We adopt this framework for designing and testing potential control strategies for T. cruzi spread in two empirical host communities. We show that the ecomultiplex model is an efficient and low data-demanding method to identify which species enhances parasite spread and should thus be a target for control strategies. We also find that the interplay between predator-prey and host-parasite interactions leads to a phenomenon of parasite amplification, in which top predators facilitate T. cruzi spread, offering a mechanistic interpretation of previous empirical findings. Our approach can provide novel insights in understanding and controlling parasite spreading in real-world complex systems. © 2018, Stella et al.

Fisica solare

CERN Document Server

Degl’Innocenti, Egidio Landi

2008-01-01

Il volume è un'introduzione alla Fisica Solare che si propone lo scopo di illustrare alla persona che intende avvicinarsi a questa disciplina (studenti, dottori di ricerca, ricercatori) i meccanismi fisici che stanno alla base della complessa fenomenologia osservata sulla stella a noi più vicina. Il volume non ha la pretesa di essere esauriente (basta pensare che la fisica solare spazia su un gran numero di discipline, quali la Fisica Nucleare, la Termodinamica, L'Elettrodinamica, la Fisica Atomica e Molecolare, la Spettoscopia in tutte le bande dello spettro elettromagnetico, la Magnetoidrodinamica, la Fisica del Plasma, lo sviluppo di nuova strumentazione, l'Ottica, ecc.). Piuttosto, sono stati scelti un numero di argomenti di rilevanza fondamentale nello studio presente del Sole (soprattutto nei riguardi delle osservazioni da terra con grandi telescopi) e su tali argomenti si è cercato di dare una panoramica generale, inclusiva dell'evoluzione storica, senza scendere in soverchi dettagli. Siccome la Fis...

Review of "Perception and production of linguistic and musical rhythm by Korean and English middle school students" by Lydia N. Slobodian

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John R. Iversen

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Interest in possible cultural influences on basic rhythm perception and production has been growing, and the paper by Slobodian (2008 fits squarely in this trend, studying rhythm perception and production in a large number English and Korean native speakers. The findings were interpreted in terms of cross-cultural similarity, suggesting that preferences, e.g. for binary meter, are broadly shared across cultures. As is commonly encountered in cross-cultural research, however, there were several difficulties in offering a clear interpretation of the results, such as the large extent of Western music enculturation of the Korean participants. This commentary will review Slobodian’s findings, offering an alternative interpretation of one result, suggesting there may be a cultural difference in meter perception. It will also review other relevant research and integrate lessons learned from a recent study of rhythm perception in Korean, American and Japanese listeners. Throughout, it aims to offer suggestions of how to improve the chances of reaching the ultimate goal of understanding what aspect of culture shapes rhythm perception and production, and the mechanisms by which they do so.

Auguste Baillayre et ses éleves européens

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stavilă

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Known in the ambiance of the Romanian art of the interwar period as one of the most talented painters, Auguste Baillayre also asserted himself as an excellent professor. His pedagogical activity has known, from the very start, brilliant achievements. Having received European studies, those over 30 students in his studio, whom Auguste Baillayre remembers in 1961, did not return to Bessarabia. Olesi Hršanovschi-Beassley (Olga Olby, Lydia Luzanovsky, Gregoire Michonze, Antoine Irisse and Joseph Bronstein studied in Paris, Felix Roitman, Helen Barlo and Natalia Bragalia – in Brussels, Elisabeth Ivanovsky, Nina Jascinsky and Nicolae Coleadici in Amsterdam. Theodor Kiriacoff worked in Romania, in Iasi and then in Bucharest, where Helen Barlo and Natalia Bragalia return after studying in France, Gheorghe Ceglocoff comes from Dresden and Galina Ceaşcenco creates her works in Prague. These are all remarkable plastic artists who affirmed themselves outside the Bessarabian borders. Their studies at the art academies „La Grand Chaumière”, „École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs”, „Académie Julian”, „Académie Ranson” in Paris, „Académie Royale de Beaux-Arts” in Brussels, and „Académie de Beaux-Arts” in Dresden have demonstrated the professional level of Auguste Baillayre’s disciples.

Experiments with mathematical models to simulate hepatitis A population dynamics under different levels of endemicity

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Mariana Alves de Guimaraens

Full Text Available Heterogeneous access to sanitation services is a characteristic of communities in Brazil. This heterogeneity leads to different patterns of hepatitis A endemicity: areas with low infection rates have higher probability of outbreaks, and areas with higher infection rates have high prevalence and low risk of outbreaks. Here we develop a mathematical model to study the effect of variable exposure to infection on the epidemiological dynamics of hepatitis A. Differential equations were used to simulate population dynamics and were numerically solved using the software StellaTM. The model uses parameters from serological surveys in the Greater Metropolitan Rio de Janeiro, in areas with different sanitation conditions. Computer simulation experiments show that the range of infection rates observed in these communities are characteristic of high and low levels of hepatitis A endemicity. We also found that the functional relationship between sanitation and exposure to infection is an important component of the model. The analysis of the public health impact of partial sanitation requires a better understanding of this relationship.

Un progetto per Padova. Piazzale Stanga e Via Venezia / A project for Padua. Piazzale Stanga and Via Venezia

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Gino Malacarne

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Piazzale Stanga e via Venezia a Padova costituiscono lo scenario del progetto che ridefinisce un crocevia viabilistico a stella, caratterizzante un luogo che non presenta qualità architettoniche di rilievo. Il progetto ha cercato di dare forma a questo spazio attraverso l’architettura, cercando di costruire per frammenti il tema della porta urbana. Il progetto si presenta con una serie di edifici autonomi che danno vita ad un insieme urbano articolato in un arcipelago di punti singolari, tenuti assieme dai rapporti di tensione reciproca che si stabiliscono tra i diversi elementi nello spazio. / Stanga square and Venice road, in Padova, are the layout of the project that redefines a crossroads star, featuring a place that doesn’t show any architectural quality. The project tries to give shape to this space through architecture, building the theme of the city gate. The project presents a series of autonomous buildings that give life to an urban set articulated in an archipelago of singular points, held together by relations of mutual tension established between the different elements in space.

Early light curves for Type Ia supernova explosion models

Science.gov (United States)

Noebauer, U. M.; Kromer, M.; Taubenberger, S.; Baklanov, P.; Blinnikov, S.; Sorokina, E.; Hillebrandt, W.

2017-12-01

Upcoming high-cadence transient survey programmes will produce a wealth of observational data for Type Ia supernovae. These data sets will contain numerous events detected very early in their evolution, shortly after explosion. Here, we present synthetic light curves, calculated with the radiation hydrodynamical approach STELLA for a number of different explosion models, specifically focusing on these first few days after explosion. We show that overall the early light curve evolution is similar for most of the investigated models. Characteristic imprints are induced by radioactive material located close to the surface. However, these are very similar to the signatures expected from ejecta-CSM or ejecta-companion interaction. Apart from the pure deflagration explosion models, none of our synthetic light curves exhibit the commonly assumed power-law rise. We demonstrate that this can lead to substantial errors in the determination of the time of explosion. In summary, we illustrate with our calculations that even with very early data an identification of specific explosion scenarios is challenging, if only photometric observations are available.

Testing sex and gender in sports; reinventing, reimagining and reconstructing histories.

Science.gov (United States)

Heggie, Vanessa

2010-12-01

Most international sports organisations work on the premise that human beings come in one of two genders: male or female. Consequently, all athletes, including intersex and transgender individuals, must be assigned to compete in one or other category. Since the 1930s (not, as is popularly suggested, the 1960s) these organisations have relied on scientific and medical professionals to provide an 'objective' judgement of an athlete's eligibility to compete in women's national and international sporting events. The changing nature of these judgements reflects a great deal about our cultural, social and national prejudices, while the matter of testing itself has become a site of conflict for feminists and human rights activists. Because of the sensitive nature of this subject, histories of sex testing are difficult to write and research; this has lead to the repetition of inaccurate information and false assertions about gender fraud, particularly in relation to the 'classic' cases of Stella Walsh and Heinrich/Hermann/Dora Ratjen. As historians, we need to be extremely careful to differentiate between mythologies and histories. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

MODEL SIMULASI EMISI DAN PENYERAPAN CO2 DI KOTA BOGOR

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Rizka Permatayakti Rasyidta Nur

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Most of the urban pollution is the result of carbon dioxide (CO2 emission from human activities. This research identified CO2 emission and absorption in Bogor, and also the alternatives to solve the emission problem by system model and simulation. CO2 emission and absorption system model was created using software Stella 9.0.2 based on loss-gain emission concept for 30 years prediction. Human activities that contribute to CO2 emission are transportation, industries, energy consumption such as fuel or electricity, house hold waste, and farms, while the decrease factor is green open spaces as CO2 sequester. The alternatives to solve emission problem in Bogor is created based on green city concept by including the environmental aspects in every urban activity. The result of this research, the CO2 emission of Bogor reached 20.027.878 tons and the absorption reached 93.843 tons in 2042. Combined mitigation alternatives in several sectors could reduce CO2 emission by 2.797.667 tons in 2042 and CO2 emission could be neutralized by reforestation in 2036.

Pulsational Pair-instability Model for Superluminous Supernova PTF12dam:Interaction and Radioactive Decay

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tolstov, Alexey; Nomoto, Ken’ichi; Blinnikov, Sergei; Quimby, Robert [Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (WPI), The University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Study, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8583 (Japan); Sorokina, Elena [Sternberg Astronomical Institute, M.V.Lomonosov Moscow State University, 119991 Moscow (Russian Federation); Baklanov, Petr, E-mail: alexey.tolstov@ipmu.jp [Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics (ITEP), 117218 Moscow (Russian Federation)

2017-02-01

Being a superluminous supernova, PTF12dam can be explained by a {sup 56}Ni-powered model, a magnetar-powered model, or an interaction model. We propose that PTF12dam is a pulsational pair-instability supernova, where the outer envelope of a progenitor is ejected during the pulsations. Thus, it is powered by a double energy source: radioactive decay of {sup 56}Ni and a radiative shock in a dense circumstellar medium. To describe multicolor light curves and spectra, we use radiation-hydrodynamics calculations of the STELLA code. We found that light curves are well described in the model with 40 M {sub ⊙} ejecta and 20–40 M {sub ⊙} circumstellar medium. The ejected {sup 56}Ni mass is about 6 M {sub ⊙}, which results from explosive nucleosynthesis with large explosion energy (2–3)×10{sup 52} erg. In comparison with alternative scenarios of pair-instability supernova and magnetar-powered supernova, in the interaction model, all the observed main photometric characteristics are well reproduced: multicolor light curves, color temperatures, and photospheric velocities.

Evaluación de Escenarios de Descongestión Vehicular en Bogotá mediante Dinámica de SistemasAssessment of Scenarios of Vehicular Decongestion in Bogotá D.C., using System Dynamics

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Carlos Franco

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Este trabajo propone el desarrollo de un modelo basado en dinámica de sistemas en el cual se caracteriza el sistema de transporte de Bogotá D.C. Para realizar esto se modelan las variables principales que intervienen en el sistema de transporte para así lograr un análisis global de la problemática de transporte y evaluar posibles soluciones propuestas por diferentes expertos.       El modelo es desarrollado mediante el software Stella, y en él se incluyen los diferentes actores que intervienen en la problemática global. Previo al desarrollo del modelo computacional, se lleva a cabo la recolección de información a través de expertos en el tema, que permita realizar una caracterización inicial, para poder así comprender la relación entre variables. Adicionalmente se evalúan sobre el modelo seis diferentes alternativas de solución a la problemática, para observar el impacto que éstas tendrían sobre el sistema de transporte.

The building of a Mediterranean identity in television: strategies and communication. The example of France 3 Corse Via Stella

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Lisa D’ORAZIO

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Now, issues of identity and representation are at the heart of media debates or historical. This concept of regional identity is, indeed, largely mobilized by the actors in these media networks. We chose to direct our communication on the question of media coverage of regional identities in France by referring to the case of Corsica.For, in Corsica, the themes of community and cultural identity are now at the heart of political debates island. The fact insular (island, image ... precisely defines the contours of this "community" human. It enabled the flourishing of culture, language and structures of society homogeneous, despite significant regional differences in micro. Now, television is becoming a major issue to try to impose this cultural revival, especially as regards the issue of regional television. What is the role of of television in promoting this culture?

Experiments with mathematical models to simulate hepatitis A population dynamics under different levels of endemicity Modelagem matemática para simular a dinâmica populacional da hepatite A de acordo com diferentes níveis de endemicidade

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Mariana Alves de Guimaraens

2005-10-01

Full Text Available Heterogeneous access to sanitation services is a characteristic of communities in Brazil. This heterogeneity leads to different patterns of hepatitis A endemicity: areas with low infection rates have higher probability of outbreaks, and areas with higher infection rates have high prevalence and low risk of outbreaks. Here we develop a mathematical model to study the effect of variable exposure to infection on the epidemiological dynamics of hepatitis A. Differential equations were used to simulate population dynamics and were numerically solved using the software StellaTM. The model uses parameters from serological surveys in the Greater Metropolitan Rio de Janeiro, in areas with different sanitation conditions. Computer simulation experiments show that the range of infection rates observed in these communities are characteristic of high and low levels of hepatitis A endemicity. We also found that the functional relationship between sanitation and exposure to infection is an important component of the model. The analysis of the public health impact of partial sanitation requires a better understanding of this relationship.Acesso heterogêneo a serviços sanitários é uma característica de comunidades brasileiras. Essa heterogeneidade promove diferentes níveis de exposição ao vírus da hepatite A, resultando em padrões variados de endemicidade: áreas com taxas altas de infecção possuem tendência para ocorrência de endemismo, enquanto taxas de infecção baixas mostram tendência para surtos. Neste trabalho, apresentamos um modelo matemático desenvolvido para estudar o efeito do risco variado de exposição na dinâmica epidemiológica da hepatite A. Equações diferenciais foram usadas para simular a dinâmica populacional e sua solução numérica obtida usando-se o programa Stella®. O modelo usa parâmetros de infecção obtidos de estudos realizados na Região Metropolitana do Rio de Janeiro, em áreas com diferentes condi

Macroalgas bentônicas associadas a bancos de Hypnea musciformis (Wulfen J.V. Lamour. (Rhodophyta - Gigartinales em duas praias do litoral baiano Macroalgae associated with banks of Hypnea musciformis (Wulfen J.V. Lamour. (Rhodophyta, Gigartinales on two beaches on the coast of Bahia

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Iara Oliveira Costa

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Este trabalho caracteriza a estrutura e dinâmica das comunidades de macroalgas bentônicas associadas a populações de H. musciformis ocorrentes em formações recifais nas praias de Stella Maris (Salvador e Itacimirim (Camaçari. As coletas ocorreram entre agosto de 2007 e junho de 2008. As formações recifais foram divididas em compartimentos com base no hidrodinamismo. Utilizou-se três transectos em cada compartimento, onde foram dispostos cinco quadrados de 20 x 20 cm. Foram obtidos dados de riqueza, biomassa, percentual de importância (Pi%, diversidade (H' e equitabilidade (J'. Na área estudada ocorreram 60 espécies: 30 Rhodophyta, 20 Chlorophyta e 10 Ochrophyta; biomassa média de 136 g.m-² (peso seco; e índices médios de H' e J' de 2,7 e 0,97, respectivamente. Houve predominância das rodofíceas, tanto em riqueza específica quanto em valores de biomassa. Foi encontrada maior contribuição do grupo morfo-funcional de algas corticadas. Dentre a flora associada, Gelidiella acerosa, Sargassum cymosum e Palisada perforata apresentaram maiores valores de biomassa. O compartimento recifal mais representativo em riqueza específica e biomassa foi a região frontal do recife. As comunidades das praias estudadas foram consideradas distintas devido à fisionomia das formações recifais.This study characterized the structure and dynamics of macroalgae communities associated with benthic populations of H. musciformis occurring in reef formations on the beaches of Stella Maris (Salvador and Itacimirim (Camaçari, Bahia. The samples were collected between August 2007 and June 2008. The reef formations were divided into compartments based on hydrodynamics. Three transects where made for each compartment, and each of these had five quadrants of 20 x 20cm. Data about the richness, biomass, percentage of importance (Pi%, diversity (H' and evenness (J' was collected. The study recorded 60 species, 30 Rhodophyta, 20 Chlorophyta and 10 Ochrophyta

BORTONI-Ricardo, Stella M. The urbanization of rural dialect speakers: a sociolinguistic study in Brazil. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985. 265p. BORTONI-Ricardo, Stella M. The urbanization of rural dialect speakers: a sociolinguistic study in Brazil. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985. 265p.

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Maria Jandyra Cunha

2008-04-01

Full Text Available Quais são os principais fatores em ação na preservção das variedades linguisticas rurais e/ou não padrão no Brasil? Seria a sua manutenção simplesmente o resultado do analfabetismo ou da marginalização social ou geografica? Os dialetos retrocedem a medida que a população ganha acesso a educação formal? Até que ponto há uma ideologia de prestigio operando entre a chamada população marginal? Até que ponto a tendência homogeneizadora da sociedade urbana oscila entre duas forças contrarias: de um lado as pressões de uma padronização, de outro a manutengao das formas não-padrão como baluartes de identidades grupais?

Interventions for postnatal depression assessing the mother–infant relationship and child developmental outcomes: a systematic review

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Tsivos ZL

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Zoe-Lydia Tsivos,1 Rachel Calam,1 Matthew R Sanders,1,2 Anja Wittkowski1 1School of Psychological Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK; 2Parenting and Family Support Center, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia Abstract: Postnatal depression (PND has negative effects on maternal well-being as well as implications for the mother–infant relationship, subsequent infant development, and family functioning. There is growing evidence demonstrating that PND impacts on a mother’s ability to interact with sensitivity and responsiveness as a caregiver, which may have implications for the infant’s development of self-regulatory skills, making the infant more vulnerable to later psychopathology. Given the possible intergenerational transmission of risk to the infant, the mother–infant relationship is a focus for treatment and research. However, few studies have assessed the effect of treatment on the mother–infant relationship and child developmental outcomes. The main aim of this paper was to conduct a systematic review and investigate effect sizes of interventions for PND, which assess the quality of the mother–infant dyad relationship and/or child outcomes in addition to maternal mood. Nineteen studies were selected for review, and their methodological quality was evaluated, where possible, effect sizes across maternal mood, quality of dyadic relationship, and child developmental outcomes were calculated. Finally, clinical implications in the treatment of PND are highlighted and recommendations made for further research. Keywords: postnatal depression, infant development, intervention, dyad, mother–infant relationship, systematic review

A Dynamic Simulation Model of Land-Use, Population, and Rural Livelihoods in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia

Science.gov (United States)

Garedew, Efrem; Sandewall, Mats; Soderberg, Ulf

2012-01-01

The dynamic interactions between society and land resources have to be taken into account when planning and managing natural resources. A computer model, using STELLA software, was developed through active participation of purposively selected farm households from different wealth groups, age groups and gender within a rural community and some members of Kebelle council. The aim of the modeling was to study the perceived changes in land-use, population and livelihoods over the next 30 years and to improve our understanding of the interactions among them. The modeling output is characterized by rapid population growth, declining farm size and household incomes, deteriorating woody vegetation cover and worsening land degradation if current conditions remain. However, through integrated intervention strategies (including forest increase, micro-finance, family planning, health and education) the woody vegetation cover is likely to increase in the landscape, population growth is likely to slow down and households' income is likely to improve. A validation assessment of the simulation model based on historical data on land-use and population from 1973 to 2006 showed that the model is relatively robust. We conclude that as a supporting tool, the simulation model can contribute to the decision making process.

System dynamics model of Hubbert Peak for China's oil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tao Zaipu; Li Mingyu

2007-01-01

American geophysicist M. King Hubbert in 1956 first introduced a logistic equation to estimate the peak and lifetime production for oil of USA. Since then, a fierce debate ensued on the so-called Hubbert Peak, including also its methodology. This paper proposes to use the generic STELLA model to simulate Hubbert Peak, particularly for the Chinese oil production. This model is demonstrated as being robust. We used three scenarios to estimate the Chinese oil peak: according to scenario 1 of this model, the Hubbert Peak for China's crude oil production appears to be in 2019 with a value of 199.5 million tonnes, which is about 1.1 times the 2005 output. Before the peak comes, Chinese oil output will grow by about 1-2% annually, after the peak, however, the output will fall. By 2040, the annual production of Chinese crude oil would be equivalent to the level of 1990. During the coming 20 years, the crude oil demand of China will probably grow at the rate of 2-3% annually, and the gap between domestic supply and total demand may be more than half of this demand

Evaluation of tritium transport in the biomass-fusion hybrid system and its environmental impact

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Namba, Kyosuke [Graduate School of Energy Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto (Japan); Kasada, Ryuta, E-mail: r-kasada@iae.kyoto-u.ac.jp [Institute of Advanced Energy, Kyoto University, Kyoto (Japan); Konishi, Satoshi [Institute of Advanced Energy, Kyoto University, Kyoto (Japan); Yamamoto, Yasushi [Faculty of Engineering Science, Kansai University, Osaka (Japan)

2015-10-15

Highlights: • We assumed that tritium migrates from biomass hybrid fusion system to fuel cell vehicles. • We developed a seven-compartment model to describe the water flow and tritium in an urban area Osaka. • Tritium concentration of surface soil water run by 4 Bq/L level after 60 years later. • The tritium does not deserve health hazard but easily detectable in the environment. - Abstract: The behavior of tritium contained in the biofuel produced by the fusion energy is analyzed. Hydrogen product is contaminated with tritium from breeding blanket of fusion plant within the regulation limit and released to atmosphere when used for fuel cell vehicles. In the model city, Osaka, seven-compartment model describes the behavior of exhausted tritium by adapting the environment water flow and its migration was analyzed with STELLA system dynamics code. Tritium (HTO) with a concentration of 5000 Bq//m{sup 3} exhausted from the running vehicle increases decades and reaches steady state after about 50 years, at around 40 Bq/m{sup 3} in atmosphere and 4 Bq/L in surface soil water that does not deserve health hazard, however causes contamination of large populated area.

Emergy synthesis and simulation for Macao

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lei, Kampeng [Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Avn Do Ouvidor Arriaga, 46/48, Edf. Nga Lim, 13 And. (D), Macao (China); Macao Science Center Ltd., Macao (China); Wang, Zhishi [Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Macau, Avn Do Ouvidor Arriaga, 46/48, Edf. Nga Lim, 13 And. (D), Macao (China)

2008-04-15

Macao is a tourist city with a dense population and has a shortage of natural resources. Almost all of the city's life-support systems thus depend on imports of external resources. During the past 20 years, Macao has experienced an economic boom accompanied by rapid social development, in which the gambling industry and related tourism services have become the main economic activity. This paper employs emergy flow analysis to investigate and characterize the evolution and development of Macao from 1983 to 2003. In addition, Macao has experienced six periods of land reclamation since 1866, supported by large-scale importation of sand and rocks from China. By simulating the emergy trends using the STELLA dynamic modeling software, we predicted the evolution of Macao's development and trends in the coming 20 years. In 2025, the city's economy is estimated to be 15 times its current size as a result of Macao's territorial expansion. The exported emergy will increase slowly and then stabilize, the population will reach 593 185, and the area covered by Macao will expand to 38.91 km{sup 2}. (author)

Multicolour modelling of SN 2013dx associated with GRB 130702A★

Science.gov (United States)

Volnova, A. A.; Pruzhinskaya, M. V.; Pozanenko, A. S.; Blinnikov, S. I.; Minaev, P. Yu.; Burkhonov, O. A.; Chernenko, A. M.; Ehgamberdiev, Sh. A.; Inasaridze, R.; Jelinek, M.; Khorunzhev, G. A.; Klunko, E. V.; Krugly, Yu. N.; Mazaeva, E. D.; Rumyantsev, V. V.; Volvach, A. E.

2017-05-01

We present optical observations of SN 2013dx, related to the Fermi burst GRB 130702A, which occurred at red shift z = 0.145. It is the second-best sampled gamma-ray burst (GRB)/supernova (SN) after SN 1998bw. The observational light curves contain more than 280 data points in the uBgrRiz filters until 88 d after the burst, and the data were collected from our observational collaboration (Maidanak Observatory, Abastumani Observatory, Crimean Astrophysical Observatory, Mondy Observatory, National Observatory of Turkey and Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos) and from the literature. We model numerically the multicolour light curves using the one-dimensional radiation hydrodynamical code stella, previously widely implemented for modelling typical non-GRB SNe. The best-fitting model has the following parameters: pre-SN star mass M = 25 M⊙; mass of the compact remnant MCR = 6 M⊙; total energy of the outburst Eoburst = 3.5 × 1052 erg; pre-supernova star radius R = 100 R⊙; M_^{56Ni} = 0.2 M_{⊙}, which is totally mixed through the ejecta; MO = 16.6 M⊙; MSi = 1.2 M⊙ and MFe = 1.2 M⊙, and the radiative efficiency of the SN is 0.1 per cent.

Ovarian Surface Epithelium in Patients with Severe Ovarian Infertility: A Potential Source of Cells Expressing Markers of Pluripotent/Multipotent Stem Cells

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Irma Virant-Klun

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to confirm the presence of stem cells in the ovarian surface epithelium of patients with premature ovarian failure and no mature follicles and oocytes. In these patients, small round cells of unknown origin expressing SOX-2 marker of pluripotency were observed among the epithelial cells just after the ovarian surface epithelium scraping. These cells were an integral part of the ovarian surface epithelium. When the scraped cells were cultured in a medium with added follicular fluid to provide some ovarian niche, primitive oocyte-like cells and typical round-shaped cell clusters positively stained on alkaline phosphatase, and markers of pluripotency, such as SOX-2 and SSEA-4, were developed. These markers were expressed early and also later in the culture. Single oocyte-like cells expressed genes OCT4A, SOX-2, NANOG, NANOS, STELLA, CD9, LIN28, KLF4, GDF3, and MYC, characteristic for pluripotent stem cells. The results of this study confirmed the presence of putative stem cells in the ovarian surface epithelium of these patients and provided some basis to create a stem cell line in the future.

CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF GLOBAL RADIATION AND INSOLATION IN THE MATO GROSSO DE GOIÁS MICROREGION CONTRIBUIÇÃO AO ESTUDO DA RADIAÇÃO GLOBAL E DA INSOLAÇÃO NA MICRO-REGIÃO DO MATO GROSSO DE GOIÁS

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Engler José Vidigal Lobato

2007-09-01

Nacional de Pesquisa de Arroz e Feijão - EMBRAPA, Goiânia — GO. A correlação entre as médias mensais da radiação solar global relativa diária e da insolação relativa diária permitiu concluir que a equação linear para a região do Mato Grosso de Goiás é o seguinte: Kg = Ka (0,27 + 0,49 n/N, onde, Kg = radiação solar global diária (ly/dia, Ka = radiação solar global diária, no topo da atmosfera (ly/dia, n = insolação diária, N = insolação máxima diária (h/dia. A metodologia adotada foi a proposta por PRESCOTT(1940 e PANMAN (1948, citada por BLACK et al (1954 para estimativa dos parâmetros a e b. A equação linear determinada mostrou um coeficiente de correlação igual a 0,95, e significância de 0,l% de probabilidade, sendo sua utilização recomendada para estimativas de valores médios de radiação solar recebida na superfície da terra, em período de cinco ou mais dias.

Nuclear Fuel Leasing, Recycling and proliferation: Modeling a Global View

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crozat, M P; Choi, J; Reis, V H; Hill, R

2004-01-01

would extend the spirit of President Eisenhower's ''Atoms for Peace'' vision toward solving some of the major international problems of the 21st Century--global climate change and the creation of a peaceful and stable world political regime. Needless to say, this is a very complex problem, encompassing all of the issues involved in nuclear power--economics, proliferation, waste management and safety--and a myriad of public and diplomatic policy issues as well. To gain a better understanding of the leasing concept we have built an interactive system dynamics model, Multinuke, using STELLA software. (STELLA is particularly useful for this type of analysis because of its capability to create user-friendly interfaces.) Multinuke simulates two separate nuclear entities and possible interactions between them, and therefore can be used to investigate the fuel-leasing concept. In this paper we will apply the results of Multinuke to a few simplified scenarios to help understand how fuel leasing might affect the future global growth of nuclear power, proliferation concern and spent fuel management

Ajuste do modelo fototérmico de estimativa do desenvolvimento e do índice de área foliar de soja Adjustment of the photothermic model to estimate soybean development and leaf area index

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Neila T. Toledo

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Visou-se neste estudo, realizar o ajuste do modelo de estimativa do desenvolvimento de populações de soja e da variação do índice de área foliar para a variedade IAS 5. Como fonte de variação na velocidade de desenvolvimento, diferentes épocas de plantio foram utilizadas em experimentos nos anos agrícolas de 2004/2005 (três datas e 2005/2006 (quatro datas no IRDeR (Instituto Regional de Desenvolvimento Rural localizado em Augusto Pestana, RS (28º 27' 17" S e 53º 54' 50" W, nos quais foram identificadas as datas em que ocorreram as principais fases do desenvolvimento da cultura da soja, seguindo a Escala Fenológica de Fehr & Caviness e estimados o índice de área foliar em quatro momentos: no final do período de instalação da população vegetal (V6; no início do florescimento (R1; início do enchimento de grãos (R5; e no início da maturação (R7. As variáveis meteorológicas temperaturas mínima e máxima diárias foram coletadas. Após o ajuste dos coeficientes genéticos, o modelo foi formatado no programa Stella 5.0. O modelo de estimativa do desenvolvimento da soja teve desempenho satisfatório, apresentando estimativas precisas para os dados que o determinaram. O modelo de estimativa do índice de área foliar apresentou estimativas satisfatórias.The present study was carried out to adjust the soy population development model and the leaf area index model for the IAS 5 cultivar. Different sowing dates were used in two experiments as source of development variation during 2004/2005 (three dates and 2005/2006 (four dates in the IRDeR (Instituto Regional de Desenvolvimento Rural located in Augusto Pestana, in the State of Rio Grande do Sul (28º 27' 17" S and 53º 54' 50" W. The main crop development phases were identified according to the Feher & Caviness phenological scale, and the leaf area index was determined in four occasions: at the final period of plant population installation (V6; at the beginning of flowering

Wetland Water Cooling Partnership: The Use of Constructed Wetlands to Enhance Thermoelectric Power Plant Cooling and Mitigate the Demand of Surface Water Use

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Apfelbaum, Steven L. [Applied Ecological Services Inc., Brodhead, WI (United States); Duvall, Kenneth W. [Sterling Energy Services, LLC, Atlanta, GA (United States); Nelson, Theresa M. [Applied Ecological Services Inc., Brodhead, WI (United States); Mensing, Douglas M. [Applied Ecological Services Inc., Brodhead, WI (United States); Bengtson, Harlan H. [Sterling Energy Services, LLC, Atlanta, GA (United States); Eppich, John [Waterflow Consultants, Champaign, IL (United States); Penhallegon, Clayton [Sterling Energy Services, LLC, Atlanta, GA (United States); Thompson, Ry L. [Applied Ecological Services Inc., Brodhead, WI (United States)

2013-12-01

Through the Phase I study segment of contract #DE-NT0006644 with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory, Applied Ecological Services, Inc. and Sterling Energy Services, LLC (the AES/SES Team) explored the use of constructed wetlands to help address stresses on surface water and groundwater resources from thermoelectric power plant cooling and makeup water requirements. The project objectives were crafted to explore and develop implementable water conservation and cooling strategies using constructed wetlands (not existing, naturally occurring wetlands), with the goal of determining if this strategy has the potential to reduce surface water and groundwater withdrawals of thermoelectric power plants throughout the country. Our team’s exploratory work has documented what appears to be a significant and practical potential for augmenting power plant cooling water resources for makeup supply at many, but not all, thermoelectric power plant sites. The intent is to help alleviate stress on existing surface water and groundwater resources through harvesting, storing, polishing and beneficially re-using critical water resources. Through literature review, development of conceptual created wetland plans, and STELLA-based modeling, the AES/SES team has developed heat and water balances for conventional thermoelectric power plants to evaluate wetland size requirements, water use, and comparative cooling technology costs. The ecological literature on organism tolerances to heated waters was used to understand the range of ecological outcomes achievable in created wetlands. This study suggests that wetlands and water harvesting can provide a practical and cost-effective strategy to augment cooling waters for thermoelectric power plants in many geographic settings of the United States, particularly east of the 100th meridian, and in coastal and riverine locations. The study concluded that constructed wetlands can have significant positive

Lower airway colonization and inflammatory response in COPD: a focus on Haemophilus influenzae

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Finney LJ

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Lydia J Finney,1 Andrew Ritchie,1 Elizabeth Pollard,2 Sebastian L Johnston,1 Patrick Mallia1 1Airway Disease Infection Section, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College, London, United Kingdom; 2King's College London, London, United Kingdom Abstract: Bacterial infection of the lower respiratory tract in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD patients is common both in stable patients and during acute exacerbations. The most frequent bacteria detected in COPD patients is Haemophilus influenzae, and it appears this organism is uniquely adapted to exploit immune deficiencies associated with COPD and to establish persistent infection in the lower respiratory tract. The presence of bacteria in the lower respiratory tract in stable COPD is termed colonization; however, there is increasing evidence that this is not an innocuous phenomenon but is associated with airway inflammation, increased symptoms, and increased risk for exacerbations. In this review, we discuss host immunity that offers protection against H. influenzae and how disturbance of these mechanisms, combined with pathogen mechanisms of immune evasion, promote persistence of H. influenzae in the lower airways in COPD. In addition, we examine the role of H. influenzae in COPD exacerbations, as well as interactions between H. influenzae and respiratory virus infections, and review the role of treatments and their effect on COPD outcomes. This review focuses predominantly on data derived from human studies but will refer to animal studies where they contribute to understanding the disease in humans. Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Haemophilus influenzae, nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae, respiratory viruses, vaccination

New approach to the understanding of keloid: psychoneuroimmune–endocrine aspects

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Hochman B

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Bernardo Hochman†, Felipe Contoli Isoldi, Fabianne Furtado, Lydia Masako Ferreira Plastic Surgery Division, Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil †Bernardo Hochman passed away on April 21, 2014 Abstract: The skin is a dynamic and complex organ that relies on the interrelation among different cell types, macromolecules, and signaling pathways. Further, the skin has interactions with its own appendages and other organs such as the sebaceous glands and hair follicles, the kidney, and adrenal glands; systems such as the central nervous system; and axes such as the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis. These continuous connections give the skin its versatility, and when an injury is caused, some triggers start a cascade of events designed to restore its integrity. Nowadays, it is known that this psychoneuroimmune–endocrine intercommunication modulates both the homeostatic condition and the healing process. In this sense, the skin conditions before a trauma, whether of endogenous (acne or exogenous origin (injury or surgical incision, could regulate the process of tissue repair. Most skin diseases such as psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, among others, have in their pathophysiology a psychogenic component that triggers integrated actions in the nervous, immune, and endocrine systems. However, fibroproliferative disorders of wound healing, such as hypertrophic scar and keloid, are not yet included in this listing, despite showing correlation with stress, especially with the psychosocial character. This review, by understanding the "brain–skin connection", presents evidence that allows us to understand the keloid as a psychomediated disease. Keywords: keloid, stress, psychological, psychoneuroimmunology, wound healing

Dynamic Modeling of Kosovo's Electricity Supply-Demand, Gaseous Emissions and Air Pollution

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Sadik Bekteshi

2015-09-01

Full Text Available In this paper is described the developing of an integrated electricity supply–demand, gaseous emission and air pollution model for study of possible baseline electricity developments and available options to mitigate emissions. This model is constructed in STELLA software, which makes use of Systems Dynamics Modeling as the methodology. Several baseline scenarios have been developed from this model and a set of options of possible developments of Kosovo's Electricity Supply–Demand and Gaseous Emissions are investigated. The analysis of various scenarios results in medium growth scenarios (MGS that imply building of generation capacities and increase in participation of the electricity generation from renewable sources. MGS would be 10% of the total electricity generation and ensure sustainable development of the electricity sector. At the same time, by implementation of new technologies, this would be accompanied by reduced GHG (CO2 and NOx emissions by 60% and significant reduction for air pollutants (dust and SO2 by 40% compared to the business-as-usual (BAU case. Conclusively, obtained results show that building of new generation capacities by introducing new technologies and orientation on environmentally friendly energy sources can ensure sustainable development of the electricity sector in Kosovo.  

COL1A2 gene analysis in a Czech osteogenesis imperfecta patient: a candidate novel mutation in a patient affected by osteogenesis imperfecta type 3

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Hrušková L

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Lucie Hrušková,1 Ivo Mařík,2,3 Stella Mazurová,1 Pavel Martásek,1 Ivan Mazura1 1Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic; 2Ambulant Centre for Defects of Locomotor Apparatus 1.1.c., Prague, Czech Republic; 3Faculty of Medical Studies, West Bohemia University, Pilsen, Czech RepublicAbstract: Osteogenesis imperfecta is a heritable bone fragility disease with a heterogenic genetic origin. Most cases result from mutations of either the COL1A1 gene or the COL1A2 gene. We identified a novel COL1A2 gene mutation in a Czech patient, born to unaffected parents, who was diagnosed according to clinical and anthropometric findings and radiographic features as having type 3 osteogenesis imperfecta, which is a severe form of this disease. The identified Gly814Trp mutation was predicted by a number of complementary bioinformatic programs to result in functional alteration of the protein. This case report provides both evidence of a novel COL1A2 mutation resulting in type 3 osteogenesis imperfecta and a genotype:phenotype correlation in this affected individual. Keywords: osteogenesis imperfecta type 3, collagen, alpha-2 (I chain, substitution, sequencing 

Instrumentation and Control Systems for Sodium thermal hydraulic Experiment Loop for Finned-tube sodium-to-Air heat exchanger (SELFA)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Byeong Yeon; Kim, Hyung Mo; Cho, Youn Gil; Kim, Jong Man; Ko, Yung Joo; Kang, Byeong Su; Jung, Min Hwan; Jeong, Ji Young [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

A forced-draft sodium-to-air heat exchanger (FHX) is a part of decay heat removal system (DHRS) in Prototype Gen-IV Sodium-cooled fast reactor (PGSFR), which is being developed at Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI). Sodium thermal hydraulic Experiment Loop for Finned-tube sodium-to-Air heat exchanger (SELFA) is a test facility for verification and validation of the design code for a forced-draft sodium-to-air heat exchanger (FHX). In this paper, we have provided design and fabrication features for the instrumentation and control systems of SELFA. In general, the instrumentation systems and control systems are coupled for measurement and control of process variables. Instrumentation systems have been designed for investigating thermal-hydraulic characteristics of FHX and control systems have been designed to control the main components (e.g. electromagnetic pumps, heaters, valves etc.) required for test in SELFA. In this paper, we have provided configurations of instrumentation and control systems for Sodium thermal hydraulic Experiment Loop for Finned-tube sodium-to-Air heat exchanger (SELFA). The instrumentation and control systems of SELFA have been implemented based on the expected operation ranges and lesson learned from operational experience of 'Sodium integral effect test loop for safety simulation and assessment-1' (STELLA-1)

Modelling Hydrological Processes in Created Freshwater Wetlands:an Integrated System Approach%人工淡水湿地的水文过程模拟:综合系统法(摘要)

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

张立; 威廉·杰·米奇

2006-01-01

This study investigates hydrologic processes of four different flow-through created freshwater wetlands in Ohio, USA, by use of several versions of a simple daily mass-balance water budget model.The model includes surface inflows and outflows, precipitation, evapotranspiration, and groundwater seepage. We calibrated the daily water budget for two experimental wetlands that had pumped inflow during 1999 and validated it during 2000 - 2002 on the same basins. The coefficient of prediction efficiency is 0.70 and the modelled hydroperiod followed observed water depths during the calibration period well. The average retention time in the calibration year 1999 was 4.4 - 4.6 days. The model was applied to a 3-ha created riparian wetland that receives river flooding. Results illustrated that this wetland has developed a hydroperiod with more than sufficient flooding to ensure that it will meet the hydrologic criteria of a formal jurisdictional wetland definition in the USA. Water budget predictions for a stormwater wetland provided useful design information for hydroperiod and hydrologic dynamics prior to the construction of that system. The model was simulated for average, dry, and wet years. An integrated systems approach was developed using a STELLA 7.0 with its capabilities of dynamicinterface level control (e. g. buttons and switches) features.

The effect of owned and earned social media activities towards purchase intention on Facebook

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Alriz Tsabit Rusdan

2018-06-01

Full Text Available With the growth of internet connection, the Indonesia people are getting more and more connected to each other with the rise of social media, especially facebook in which nowadays has become one of the mainstream channel for companies to inform their product and to share their brand value to the consumer. This research will oversee the technology acceptance aspect in which affected by the ease of use and joyfulness of the users, owned social media aspect or the channel that are owned and can be controlled by companies or brand alike whose the acceptance of the information are affected by usefulness, reputation, trust, and altruism. And the earned social media aspects which are affected by information acceptance and social connection. The research are conducted by sending questioners to facebook users who is a consumer of Stella air freshener products. The research shown that technology acceptance aspects are not significantly affected the perception of a product fanpage, in the contrary earned and owned social media aspects along with the factors that affecting it has shown as significantly affected the perception of the users in facebook toward the fanpage, who in the end will affecting their purchase intention to the product of the fanpage.

Forecasting gastrointestinal precipitation and oral pharmacokinetics of dantrolene in dogs using an in vitro precipitation testing coupled with in silico modeling and simulation.

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Kambayashi, Atsushi; Dressman, Jennifer B

2017-10-01

The aim of the current research was to determine the precipitation kinetics of dantrolene sodium using canine biorelevant in vitro testing and to model the precipitation kinetics by appropriately coupling the data with an in silico tool adapted for dogs. The precipitation profiles of dantrolene sodium solutions were obtained with the in vitro paddle apparatus at a revolution rate of 50rpm. The in silico prediction tool was designed using STELLA software and the predicted plasma concentration profiles of dantrolene using the in vitro precipitation data were compared with the observed in vivo pharmacokinetics in beagle dogs. The plasma profiles of dantrolene, which served as a model weakly acidic drug which precipitates in the upper gastrointestinal tract, was successfully predicted using the in vitro precipitation testing coupled with the in silico modeling and simulation approach. The approach was subsequently used to forecast the effect of pharmaceutical excipients (HPMC/PG) on the ability of the drug to supersaturate in the gut and the resulting pharmacokinetics. The agreement of the simulated pharmacokinetics with the observed values confirms the ability of canine biorelevant media to predict oral performance of enhanced dosage forms in dogs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

PEMODELAN SISTEM PENGUSAHAAN WISATA ALAM DI TAMAN NASIONAL GUNUNG CIREMAI, JAWA BARAT (Modelling of Nature Tourism Management System in Gunung Ciremai National Park, West Java

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Ai Yuniarsih

2014-10-01

The utilization of national park’s natural resources which is limited on nature tourism and environmental services needs proper management plan that can meet the ecological goal and socio-economical goal. Therefore this research aimed to build the model of Gunung Ciremai National Park (TNGC natural resources utility development which could reach the ecological’s goal and socio-economical’s goal. Method used in this research was Dynamic Sistem Analysis with STELLA 9.02 software. Based on the previous study, nature tourism management was the prioritized activity chosen by the community.  Result of the simulation based on the recent condition showed that if there was not change in key variables for  the next ten years, there was   increase in tourist number, community income and government income, but decrease in forest cover which only reached 46.63 % of the TNGC area. Simulation with development scenario showed the significant increase in tourist number, community income and government income and the forest cover reached 68.64 % of TNGC area. The nature tourism management model was very influenced by stakeholders’ role, especially in managing promotion, restoration, forest protection, tourism site quality improvement and accesibilities, improving TNGC’s human resources capacity and competency, and  increasing community participation in the management.

Application of macro material flow modeling to the decision making process for integrated waste management systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vigil, S.A.; Holter, G.M.

1995-04-01

Computer models have been used for almost a decade to model and analyze various aspects of solid waste management Commercially available models exist for estimating the capital and operating costs of landfills, waste-to-energy facilities and compost systems and for optimizing system performance along a single dimension (e.g. cost or transportation distance). An alternative to the use of currently available models is the more flexible macro material flow modeling approach in which a macro scale or regional level approach is taken. Waste materials are tracked through the complete integrated waste management cycle from generation through recycling and reuse, and finally to ultimate disposal. Such an approach has been applied by the authors to two different applications. The STELLA simulation language (for Macintosh computers) was used to model the solid waste management system of Puerto Rico. The model incorporated population projections for all 78 municipalities in Puerto Rico from 1990 to 2010, solid waste generation factors, remaining life for the existing landfills, and projected startup time for new facilities. The Pacific Northwest Laboratory has used the SimScript simulation language (for Windows computers) to model the management of solid and hazardous wastes produced during cleanup and remediation activities at the Hanford Nuclear Site

Recensiones

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César Vidal

1994-01-01

Full Text Available RESEÑA 1 de : Tresmontant, C. Le Chríst hébreu. París : Albin Michel, 1992. RESEÑA 2 de : Fricke, W. El juicio contra Jesús. Barcelona : Martínez Roca, 1993. RESEÑA 3 de : Kramrisch, Stella. The Presence of Siva. Princeton University Press, 1992. RESEÑA 4 de : Tamayo-Acosta, Juan José. Para comprender la escatología cristiana. Estella : Verbo divino, 1993. RESEÑA 5 de : Marinatos, N.; Hägg, R. Greek Sanctuaries. New Approaches. Londres-Nueva York : Routledge, 1993. RESEÑA 6 de : Braccesi, L. Hesperia, 3. Studi sulla Grecitá di Occidente. Roma : «L'Erma» di Bretschneider, 1993. RESEÑA 7 de : Wells, B. Agriculture in Ancient Greece. Estocolmo : Svenska Institutet i Athen, 1992. RESEÑA 8 de : Fernández Uriel, Pilar. Introducción a la Historia Antigua-ll. El mundo griego, I. Madrid : 1993. RESEÑA 9 de : Mangas J.; Alvar, J. Homenaje a José M.Blázquez. I. Madrid : Ediciones Clásicas, 1993. RESEÑA 10 de : Fernández Uriel, P.; Vázquez Hoys, A.M. Diccionario del Mundo Antiguo. Próximo Oriente, Egipto, Grecia y Roma. Madrid : Alianza Editorial, 1994.

An Intergrated Sustainability Assessment of the Swedish Sugar Production System from a Life-Cycle Perspective: 2003-2015

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Barry Ness

2011-06-01

Full Text Available The article presents a sustainability assessment of the beet-to-sugar production system in Sweden from 2003 until 2015. It focuses on the life-cycle phases of beet growing, beet transport and sugar processing. Based on the Swedish sustainable development strategy, eight indicators in environmental and socio-economic domains based significantly on EU price and production quota changes are assessed. The study also appraises the autumn wheat-to-flour production system as an alternative scenario to provide a better understanding of the overall impacts on the region of the effects of the EU price and quota changes. The method used is a system analysis (simulation model developed with the software STELLA 9.1. The study is a part of a broader regional sustainability assessment that focuses on the sugar sector in Sweden. Model results of the combined sugar and flour systems show general declines in agricultural landscape diversity and revenues earned in the region with only slight decreases in the number of full-time jobs in the region. Results also reveal decreases in the amount of nutrient runoff, fossil fuel energy use, greenhouse gas releases and field chemical use, with more substantial decreases in biodiversity via the suspension of organic beet growing in the region.

APPLICATION OF SUSTAINABILITY CRITERIA TO STELLA, MISSOURI-ECONOMIC PLANNING-PRELIMINARY SITE INFORMATION AND ELEMENTS OF THE MASTER PLAN-16NOV2006 (1130)

Science.gov (United States)

Economic systems constraints and performance requirements that are essential to providing goods and services, jobs, and a functioning economic system form a list of criteria for planning a sustainable economy. This presentation places these economic criteria in the context of Ste...

Rotation, activity, and lithium abundance in cool binary stars

Science.gov (United States)

Strassmeier, K. G.; Weber, M.; Granzer, T.; Järvinen, S.

2012-10-01

We have used two robotic telescopes to obtain time-series high-resolution optical echelle spectroscopy and V I and/or by photometry for a sample of 60 active stars, mostly binaries. Orbital solutions are presented for 26 double-lined systems and for 19 single-lined systems, seven of them for the first time but all of them with unprecedented phase coverage and accuracy. Eighteen systems turned out to be single stars. The total of 6609 {R=55 000} échelle spectra are also used to systematically determine effective temperatures, gravities, metallicities, rotational velocities, lithium abundances and absolute Hα-core fluxes as a function of time. The photometry is used to infer unspotted brightness, {V-I} and/or b-y colors, spot-induced brightness amplitudes and precise rotation periods. An extra 22 radial-velocity standard stars were monitored throughout the science observations and yield a new barycentric zero point for our STELLA/SES robotic system. Our data are complemented by literature data and are used to determine rotation-temperature-activity relations for active binary components. We also relate lithium abundance to rotation and surface temperature. We find that 74 % of all known rapidly-rotating active binary stars are synchronized and in circular orbits but 26 % (61 systems) are rotating asynchronously of which half have {P_rot>P_orb} and {e>0}. Because rotational synchronization is predicted to occur before orbital circularization active binaries should undergo an extra spin-down besides tidal dissipation. We suspect this to be due to a magnetically channeled wind with its subsequent braking torque. We find a steep increase of rotation period with decreasing effective temperature for active stars, P_rot ∝ T_eff-7, for both single and binaries, main sequence and evolved. For inactive, single giants with {P_rot>100} d, the relation is much weaker, {P_rot ∝ T_eff-1.12}. Our data also indicate a period-activity relation for Hα of the form {R_Hα ∝ P

Binary-induced magnetic activity?. Time-series echelle spectroscopy and photometry of HD 123351 = CZ CVn

Science.gov (United States)

Strassmeier, K. G.; Carroll, T. A.; Weber, M.; Granzer, T.; Bartus, J.; Oláh, K.; Rice, J. B.

2011-11-01

Context. Multi-wavelength time-series observations with high cadence and long duration are needed to resolve and understand the many variations of magnetically active late-type stars, which is an approach often used to observe the Sun. Aims: We present a first and detailed study of the bright and active K0IV-III star HD 123351. Methods: We acquired a total of 955 high-resolution STELLA echelle spectra during the years 2006-2010 and a total of 2260 photometric VIC data points during 1998-2010. These data are complemented by some spectra from CFHT and KPNO. Results: The star is found to be a single-lined spectroscopic binary with a period of 147.8919 ± 0.0003 days and a large eccentricity of e = 0.8086 ± 0.0001. The rms of the orbital solution is just 47 m s-1, making it the most precise orbit ever obtained for an active binary system. The rotation period is constrained from long-term photometry to be 58.32 ± 0.01 days. It shows that HD 123351 is a very asynchronous rotator, rotating five times slower than the expected pseudo-synchronous value. Two spotted regions persisted throughout the 12 years of our observations. We interpret them as active longitudes on a differentially rotating surface with a ΔP/P of 0.076. Four years of Hα, Ca ii H&K and He i D3 monitoring identifies the same main periodicity as the photometry but dynamic spectra also indicate that there is an intermittent dependence on the orbital period, in particular for Ca ii H&K in 2008. Line-profile inversions of a pair of Zeeman sensitive/insensitive iron lines yield an average surface magnetic-flux density of 542 ± 72 G. The time series for 2008 is modulated by the stellar rotation as well as the orbital motion, such that the magnetic flux is generally weaker during times of periastron and that the chromospheric emissions vary in anti-phase with the magnetic flux. We also identify a broad and asymmetric lithium line profile and measure an abundance of log n(Li) = 1.70 ± 0.05. The star

Modeling of primary production of phytoplankton in the wetland Jaboque, Bogotá D.C.

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Julio Eduardo Beltrán Vargas

2016-02-01

Full Text Available A dynamic simulation model is presented to explain the general behavior of the  primary production of phytoplankton in the wetland Jaboque - Bogota, Colombia, in three sections with differential physical and chemical characteristics. The model takes into account the physicochemical variables, the basin area, depth, annual rainfall, water temperature, pH and concentration of chlorophyll _a. The dynamic modeling is based on differential equations and the Euler integration method is used, the modeling was developed using Stella 9.1® computer program. The model allows quantifying the primary production of phytoplankton in wetland Jaboque from chlorophyll _a monthly average concentration for each section. The results of the Ppf modeling show that Ppf concentration variations  in each section of the wetland follow a reverse pattern to the bimodal behavior of precipitation. A high degree of correspondence between the values of chlorophyll_a Ppf field and modeled in the following manner r2 = 0.86 for the first section and r2 = 0.86 and r2 = 0.79 for the remaining sections was found. Error determination was 0,57 relative to the first section and 0,35; 0,46, indicating that the results are not overstated. The model shows in general terms the functional aspects of behavior Ppf and its relation to the process of eutrophication, and it allows recommendations for the management and restoration of wetlands.

Simulação do impacto do fungo Nomuraea rileyi em populações da lagarta da soja, Anticarsia gemmatalis

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Sujii Edison Ryoiti

2002-01-01

Full Text Available O fungo entomopatogênico Nomuraea rileyi (Farlow Samson produz epizootias em populações de lagarta da soja, Anticarsia gemmatalis (Huebner, controlando naturalmente a praga em determinadas condições. No entanto, a epizootia nem sempre ocorre a tempo de evitar que as populações desta praga causem dano econômico à cultura. Foi criado um modelo matemático para simular a ocorrência de N. rileyi em populações de A. gemmatalis nas lavouras de soja da Flórida, EUA. O objetivo deste trabalho foi desenvolver um sistema que integrasse esse modelo a outros modelos (fenologia da soja e da praga, interações inseto-planta e dinâmica populacional da praga, a fim de gerar simulações mais precisas no manejo da praga. Estes modelos foram construídos a partir de estudos ecológicos dos organismos envolvidos, conduzidos nas áreas de soja no Brasil. O sistema integrado foi desenvolvido com base em equações de diferenças que são processadas pelo programa STELLA, versão 5.0 Research. A avaliação do modelo em Planaltina, DF, e Londrina, PR, demonstraram que o sistema é capaz de simular a ocorrência de epizootias ou explosões populacionais da lagarta da soja.

Modeling phytoremediation of nitrogen-polluted water using water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes)

Science.gov (United States)

Mayo, Aloyce W.; Hanai, Emmanuel E.

2017-08-01

Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) has a great potential for purification of wastewater through physical, chemical and biological mechanisms. In an attempt to improve the quality of effluents discharged from waste stabilization ponds at the University of Dar es Salaam, a pilot plant was constructed to experiment the effectiveness of this plants for transformation and removal of nitrogen. Samples of wastewater were collected and examined for water quality parameters, including pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and various forms of nitrogen, which were used as input parameters in a kinetic mathematical model. A conceptual model was then developed to model various processes in the system using STELLA 6.0.1 software. The results show that total nitrogen was removed by 63.9%. Denitrification contributed 73.8% of the removed nitrogen. Other dominant nitrogen removal mechanisms are net sedimentation and uptake by water hyacinth, which contributed 16.7% and 9.5% of the removed nitrogen, respectively. The model indicated that in presence of water hyacinth biofilm about 1.26 g Nm-2day-1 of nitrogen was removed. However, in the absence of biofilm in water hyacinth pond, the permanent nitrogen removal was only 0.89 g Nm-2day-1. This suggests that in absence of water hyacinth, the efficiency of nitrogen removal would decrease by 29.4%.

Apuntes sobre el 'teatro civile'. Entrevista a Daniele Biacchessi

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Daniele Biacchessi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Unas pocas líneas no bastan para presentar la figura del periodista, escritor y dramaturgo Daniele Biacchessi. Su amplia labor como periodista en algunos de los medios de difusión más relevantes de Italia y su constante producción como divulgador y creador  del llamado teatro civil hacen de él una figura que no puede dejarse de lado a la hora de hablar del teatro de inspiración cívica de la última década. Interesado en denunciar desde desastres medioambientales como en La fabbrica dei profumi o las matanzas nazis en Sant'Anna di Stazzema y Marzabotto a finales de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, basta dar un vistazo a algunos de sus títulos para tener una idea de la amplitud de temas tratados por Biacchessi, entre los que destacan Giovanni e Nori. Una storia di amore e di resistenza (2014, Passione reporter (2009, Il paese della vergogna (2007, Una stella a cinque punte. Le inchieste D'Antona e Biagi e le nuove Br (2007. Completan la entrevista hecha por Massimiliano Vellini dos pequeños fragmentos de uno de los manuales fundamentales sobre el llamado teatro de carácter cívico, Teatro civile, nei luoghi dell'inchiesta e della narrazione (Milán: Edizioni Ambiente, 2010.

Evaluation and use dynamics of hydric resource in Baru (Cartagena, Bolivar, Colombia)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berdugo Moreno, Monica; Betancourt Morales, Andres; Maldonado Chaparro, Adriana; Garzon, Javier

2004-01-01

The insular town of Baru (Cartagena, Bolivar, Colombia) lacks aqueduct and sewer system services; however, Baru's habitants manipulate the water to satisfy their basic necessities. In this way, we evaluated water quality and characterized the dynamic of its use in Baru during the dry season (March of 2003). We answer two basic questions: is the available water in Baru suitable for human consumption? And, which are the events, flow and processes involved in its handling? The evaluation of the quality of the water was made by comparison of some physicochemical and microbiological variables versus the standards of the Colombian law. It was found that the water in Baru is not safe, due to coliforms. The dynamics of water use in this town was studied by interviewing some of the inhabitants and recognition trips of the available infrastructure. Information about consumption practices, habits and methods of treatment of sweet water, disposition of served waters and volume consumed by person (91,4 L/day) was obtained. With this information, we constructed a model of the water flow using the software STELLA 7.0.3, It was found that the system has low sustainability due to the marked seasonality of rain, the great dependence to external factors and to the human work required for the maintenance of the system

A hybrid system dynamics and optimization approach for supporting sustainable water resources planning in Zhengzhou City, China

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhi; Li, Chunhui; Wang, Xuan; Peng, Cong; Cai, Yanpeng; Huang, Weichen

2018-01-01

Problems with water resources restrict the sustainable development of a city with water shortages. Based on system dynamics (SD) theory, a model of sustainable utilization of water resources using the STELLA software has been established. This model consists of four subsystems: population system, economic system, water supply system and water demand system. The boundaries of the four subsystems are vague, but they are closely related and interdependent. The model is applied to Zhengzhou City, China, which has a serious water shortage. The difference between the water supply and demand is very prominent in Zhengzhou City. The model was verified with data from 2009 to 2013. The results show that water demand of Zhengzhou City will reach 2.57 billion m3 in 2020. A water resources optimization model is developed based on interval-parameter two-stage stochastic programming. The objective of the model is to allocate water resources to each water sector and make the lowest cost under the minimum water demand. Using the simulation results, decision makers can easily weigh the costs of the system, the water allocation objectives, and the system risk. The hybrid system dynamics method and optimization model is a rational try to support water resources management in many cities, particularly for cities with potential water shortage and it is solidly supported with previous studies and collected data.

A mediated modelling approach to promote collaborative learning in Andean rural micro-catchments in Colombia

Science.gov (United States)

Gowing, John; Dominguez, Isabel

2013-04-01

In rural catchments of developing countries water-related diseases, due to land use patterns (agriculture and livestock), microbial pollution, inadequate sanitation systems, access to water of poor quality, and lack of institutional support are common problems which disproportionally affect poor and vulnerable people. This research aims at developing a system dynamic model to improve the understanding of the macro and micro factors that influence human health and environmental health in rural micro-catchments in Valle del Cauca, Colombia. In this catchment livelihoods for most people depend on agriculture, particularly coffee. The research uses a mediated modeling approach, in which different stakeholders in modeling sessions, develop a STELLA model that allows them to identify relations between the economic, social and environmental factors and driving forces over the performance of their system. Stakeholders jointly develop the model structure in sessions facilitated by the researcher and the data required is gathered using secondary information from the different relevant institutions and primary information from field surveys that cover socioeconomic and environmental aspects that has not been previously collected by any institution or organization (i.e. household survey, stream water survey, and drinking water survey). Representation and understanding of their system will allow the stakeholders to test the effect of different management strategies in the micro-catchment and their associated socioeconomic, environmental and human health outcomes.

A System Dynamics Modeling of Water Supply and Demand in Las Vegas Valley

Science.gov (United States)

Parajuli, R.; Kalra, A.; Mastino, L.; Velotta, M.; Ahmad, S.

2017-12-01

The rise in population and change in climate have posed the uncertainties in the balance between supply and demand of water. The current study deals with the water management issues in Las Vegas Valley (LVV) using Stella, a system dynamics modeling software, to model the feedback based relationship between supply and demand parameters. Population parameters were obtained from Center for Business and Economic Research while historical water demand and conservation practices were modeled as per the information provided by local authorities. The water surface elevation of Lake Mead, which is the prime source of water supply to the region, was modeled as the supply side whereas the water demand in LVV was modeled as the demand side. The study was done from the period of 1989 to 2049 with 1989 to 2012 as the historical one and the period from 2013 to 2049 as the future period. This study utilizes Coupled Model Intercomparison Project data sets (2013-2049) (CMIP3&5) to model different future climatic scenarios. The model simulates the past dynamics of supply and demand, and then forecasts the future water budget for the forecasted future population and future climatic conditions. The results can be utilized by the water authorities in understanding the future water status and hence plan suitable conservation policies to allocate future water budget and achieve sustainable water management.

Modelo dinâmico de sistemas para o gerenciamento de resíduos da construção civil na cidade de Porto Alegre: estudo de caso

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Luis Hernando Walteros Galarza

2015-09-01

Full Text Available RESUMOO presente artigo relata a elaboração de um modelo dinâmico de sistemas com o estudo de material reciclado proveniente de escombros para a fabricação de blocos de concreto do tipo não estruturais, utilizando para a modelagem das variáveis o programa computacional Stella. Essa modelagem permite que seja feita uma análise de cada variável do processo de produção, servindo como base para a definição das atividades críticas e as possibilidades de melhora e otimização do processo de produção, além de ser um critério de validação para uma adequada reutilização dos resíduos da construção, tendo em vista as legislações atuais e especificações técnicas e ambientais. Este estudo permitiu o desenvolvimento de um modelo conceitual de análise do processo de produção dos blocos através do comportamento que apresenta as variáveis que intervém no processo, demonstrando que a utilização de resíduos de construção e demolição neste estudo de caso é uma alternativa socioambiental com potencial econômico.

Developing a Serious Game for decision making for the water-land-food-energy-climate Nexus in Sardinia-Italy: The SIM4NEXUS approach

Science.gov (United States)

Vamvakeridou-Lyroudia, Lydia; Alexandri, Eva; Blanco, Maria; Chew, Chengzi; Conradt, Tobias; Daskalou, Olympia; Evans, Barry; Guitart, Francesc; Mereu, Simone; Sartori, Martina; Susnik, Janez; Savic, Dragan

2017-04-01

downscaling HADGEM2 models - http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/research/modelling-systems/unified-model/climate-models/hadgem2); (iii) socio-economic inputs and projections (GTAP - http://en.openei.org/wiki/Global_Trade_and_Analysis_Project_(GTAP)_Model) with System Dynamic Modelling (SDM) using STELLA for the visual environment- http://www.iseesystems.com/store/products/stella-professional.aspx and STELLAR as an open source programming language - http://www.r-gis.net/stellar/); (iv) creating a Knowledge Elicitation Engine (KEE), providing nexus semantics to the outputs of the SDM and (v) generating knowledge from Serious Game user interaction. Local data from Sardinian experts and stakeholders are being used in the pilot, which has been developed with their participation. The presentation will show results from sample scenarios and the approach to simulating uncertainties using SDM, as well as the overall data transfer and management scheme. It should be pointed out that the process of linking thematic models to System Dynamics (Complexity Science Modelling) and creating a KEE out of this combination is, to the best of our knowledge, novel and does not exist in the literature.

Cocteau au cirque: The Poetics of Parade and "Le Numéro Barbette"

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Jennifer Forrest

2003-01-01

Full Text Available Parade (1917 was a joint effort production with libretto by Jean Cocteau music by Erik Satie, decor, costumes, and curtain by Pablo Picasso, and choreography by Léonide Massine. It was not only Cocteau's first truly original work, but, as Pierre Gobin contends, Parade is central to an understanding of the structures that would inform all of his subsequent work. Equally central, proposes Lydia Crowson, is Cocteau's July 1926 Nouvelle Revue Française article on "Le Numéro Barbette." The essay on the transvestite striptease trapezist Barbette offers a poetics of the theater that will have changed little by the time of his last play, L'Impromptu du Palais Royal . The underlying system structuring the Coctelian poetics perceived by Gobin and Crowson is perhaps neither in Parade nor in "Le Numéro Barbette" alone, but in both as they propose a poetics of Coctelian art as illusion, and reference and actualize the semantic register of a particular signifying system: not the fairground parade , as contends Gobin and other critics, but the circus and circus culture. But while Parade and "Le Numéro Barbette" share a circus-related theme, the circus does not function merely as a metaphor. Each work in a different way appropriates and promotes rather the circus's revolutionary orientation toward space, its creation of "real" time, and its undermining of social signifying systems, in particular those pertaining to race and gender. The circus space is like that of dreams in that it permits the irresolution and co-existence of the sort of contradictions cited by Guillaume Apollinaire in the celebrated program notes for Parade , and produced by Barbette in his aerial number. This he learned from the circus. Parade and "Le Numéro Barbette" are indeed pivotal texts in the formulation of Cocteau's very twentieth-century poétique .

Applying a System Dynamics Approach for Modeling Groundwater Dynamics to Depletion under Different Economical and Climate Change Scenarios

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Hamid Balali

2015-09-01

Full Text Available In the recent decades, due to many different factors, including climate change effects towards be warming and lower precipitation, as well as some structural policies such as more intensive harvesting of groundwater and low price of irrigation water, the level of groundwater has decreased in most plains of Iran. The objective of this study is to model groundwater dynamics to depletion under different economic policies and climate change by using a system dynamics approach. For this purpose a dynamic hydro-economic model which simultaneously simulates the farmer’s economic behavior, groundwater aquifer dynamics, studied area climatology factors and government economical policies related to groundwater, is developed using STELLA 10.0.6. The vulnerability of groundwater balance is forecasted under three scenarios of climate including the Dry, Nor and Wet and also, different scenarios of irrigation water and energy pricing policies. Results show that implementation of some economic policies on irrigation water and energy pricing can significantly affect on groundwater exploitation and its volume balance. By increasing of irrigation water price along with energy price, exploitation of groundwater will improve, in so far as in scenarios S15 and S16, studied area’s aquifer groundwater balance is positive at the end of planning horizon, even in Dry condition of precipitation. Also, results indicate that climate change can affect groundwater recharge. It can generally be expected that increases in precipitation would produce greater aquifer recharge rates.

A Life of Their Own: Women’s Mid-life Quest in Contemporary Irish Women’s Short Stories

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Ann Wan-lih Chang

2016-03-01

Full Text Available This essay focuses on the motif of quest, as initiated by older or middle-aged women and depicted in stories by Clare Boylan, Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, Stella Mahon, Mary Dorcey and Marilyn McLaughlin in the 1980s and 90s. Throughout the western literary canon the quest motif recurs in myths, legends or genres such as rite-of-passage novels, in which a hero (seldom a heroine is encouraged to prove his own value through a series of tests. Within this tradition, a woman’s quest is usually one involving a process which shapes her into the contemporary norms of social conformity – essentially losing or sublimating the self rather than developing or expressing the potential of the self. Notwithstanding the traditional depictions of a female quest in which loss and self-sacrifice are characteristic, representations of Irish women in the stories explored in this essay demonstrate heroines whose quest leads them to a kind of awakening and enlightenment. The heroine in Irish women’s stories engages in subversion of the social norm as part of an attempt to reconcile with residual trauma from the past, or with inner conflicts which have left her feeling alienated from accepted social conventions and expectations in respect of women. Irish female writers illustrate through their narrative a latent power to challenge and to subvert the traditionally accepted and dominant patriarchal ideology of Irish society.

Scrivere al tornio, modellare il testo: Edmund de Waal tra istallazione e memoir

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Francesca Cuojati

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The Hare with Amber Eyes (2010 by Edmund de Waal is a memoir written by “a very textual potter”. Thanks to the inheritance of a collection of tiny Japanese carvings, de Waal leaves on a journey to Paris, Vienna, Odessa, back to his Jewish roots in nineteenth century aesthtecisism and in the tragedy of the Shoah. Drawing parallels between his writing, collecting and the plastic arts of pottery, the author explores the affinities between artefact and word, installation and proposition, collection and archive. The Hare can be read in the context of what R. Wendorf has defined a “literature of collecting,” including critical theory as well as narratives dealing with its practices. Rich in intertextual excursions, de Waal’s autobiographical writing develops a fruitful conversation with W. Benjamin’s 1931 paradigmatic text “Unpacking my Library”. Also P. Levi’s La chiave a stella riverberates in the writer’s awareness of the importance of precision in practices like creating an installation and writing about the past, involving both aesthetic and moral responsabilities. De Waal’s stance about the transitivity between art and writing finally emerges from the very rhetorics of his work which abounds in circular structures like the red alluminium ring which sustains his installation at the V&A Ceramics Galleries and the figure of the chiasmus which organizes his prose writing, linking him yet again to his Jewish cultural origins.

In Vivo Predictive Dissolution: Comparing the Effect of Bicarbonate and Phosphate Buffer on the Dissolution of Weak Acids and Weak Bases.

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Krieg, Brian J; Taghavi, Seyed Mohammad; Amidon, Gordon L; Amidon, Gregory E

2015-09-01

Bicarbonate is the main buffer in the small intestine and it is well known that buffer properties such as pKa can affect the dissolution rate of ionizable drugs. However, bicarbonate buffer is complicated to work with experimentally. Finding a suitable substitute for bicarbonate buffer may provide a way to perform more physiologically relevant dissolution tests. The dissolution of weak acid and weak base drugs was conducted in bicarbonate and phosphate buffer using rotating disk dissolution methodology. Experimental results were compared with the predicted results using the film model approach of (Mooney K, Mintun M, Himmelstein K, Stella V. 1981. J Pharm Sci 70(1):22-32) based on equilibrium assumptions as well as a model accounting for the slow hydration reaction, CO2 + H2 O → H2 CO3 . Assuming carbonic acid is irreversible in the dehydration direction: CO2 + H2 O ← H2 CO3 , the transport analysis can accurately predict rotating disk dissolution of weak acid and weak base drugs in bicarbonate buffer. The predictions show that matching the dissolution of weak acid and weak base drugs in phosphate and bicarbonate buffer is possible. The phosphate buffer concentration necessary to match physiologically relevant bicarbonate buffer [e.g., 10.5 mM (HCO3 (-) ), pH = 6.5] is typically in the range of 1-25 mM and is very dependent upon drug solubility and pKa . © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

Una alabarda procedente del valle del Manzanares (Madrid

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Miguel Ángel de BLAS CORTINA

2009-12-01

the metallurgical point of view in the group E 01 (copper with arsenic characteristic of the Iberian Peninsula during the Early Bronze Age. Typologically, it can be classified as belonging to the group of the Carrapatas, which includes a number of halberds found in Northeastern Portugal (Bragança and Tras os Montes, and very scantily represented outside the area concerned. Particularly significant is the find of Finca de la Paloma (Pantoja, Toledo which shows the relation between the Carrapatas halberds and features characteristic of the late Bell Beaker of Spain and Portugal, and which allows the dating of this type between 1700 and 1500 B.C., a date similar to the one generally admitted for the Irish halberds with which some investigators have seen possible connections. The existence of engravings representing halberds in stellae belonging to later periods or on rocks in the open air posits the problem of their survival. Nevertheless, the symbollic character of the weapons carved on the stellae leaves open the possibility that only the image of the weapon survives whereas the weapon itself has gone out of use. The halberd found in the Manzanares, and of course those of Pantoja, points out to the existence in the South Meseta of metallurgical elements characteristic of the North-West of the Peninsula at a period which coincides with the final phases of the Bell Beaker Culture.

2012 best practices for repositories collection, storage, retrieval, and distribution of biological materials for research international society for biological and environmental repositories.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-04-01

Third Edition [Formula: see text] [Box: see text] Printed with permission from the International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER) © 2011 ISBER All Rights Reserved Editor-in-Chief Lori D. Campbell, PhD Associate Editors Fay Betsou, PhD Debra Leiolani Garcia, MPA Judith G. Giri, PhD Karen E. Pitt, PhD Rebecca S. Pugh, MS Katherine C. Sexton, MBA Amy P.N. Skubitz, PhD Stella B. Somiari, PhD Individual Contributors to the Third Edition Jonas Astrin, Susan Baker, Thomas J. Barr, Erica Benson, Mark Cada, Lori Campbell, Antonio Hugo Jose Froes Marques Campos, David Carpentieri, Omoshile Clement, Domenico Coppola, Yvonne De Souza, Paul Fearn, Kelly Feil, Debra Garcia, Judith Giri, William E. Grizzle, Kathleen Groover, Keith Harding, Edward Kaercher, Joseph Kessler, Sarah Loud, Hannah Maynor, Kevin McCluskey, Kevin Meagher, Cheryl Michels, Lisa Miranda, Judy Muller-Cohn, Rolf Muller, James O'Sullivan, Karen Pitt, Rebecca Pugh, Rivka Ravid, Katherine Sexton, Ricardo Luis A. Silva, Frank Simione, Amy Skubitz, Stella Somiari, Frans van der Horst, Gavin Welch, Andy Zaayenga 2012 Best Practices for Repositories: Collection, Storage, Retrieval and Distribution of Biological Materials for Research INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR BIOLOGICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL REPOSITORIES (ISBER) INTRODUCTION T he availability of high quality biological and environmental specimens for research purposes requires the development of standardized methods for collection, long-term storage, retrieval and distribution of specimens that will enable their future use. Sharing successful strategies for accomplishing this goal is one of the driving forces for the International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER). For more information about ISBER see www.isber.org . ISBER's Best Practices for Repositories (Best Practices) reflect the collective experience of its members and has received broad input from other repository professionals. Throughout this document

Selective cognitive empathy deficit in adolescents with restrictive anorexia nervosa

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Calderoni S

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Sara Calderoni,1 Pamela Fantozzi,1 Sandra Maestro,1 Elena Brunori,1 Antonio Narzisi,1 Giulia Balboni,2 Filippo Muratori1,31Department of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, IRCCS Stella Maris Foundation, 2Department of Surgery, Medical, Molecular and Critical Area Pathology, University of Pisa, 3Department of Developmental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, ItalyBackground: A growing, but conflicting body of literature suggests altered empathic abilities in subjects with anorexia nervosa-restricting type (AN-R. This study aims to characterize the cognitive and affective empathic profiles of adolescents with purely AN-R.Methods: As part of a standardized clinical and research protocol, the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI, a valid and reliable self-reported instrument to measure empathy, was administered to 32 female adolescents with AN-R and in 41 healthy controls (HC comparisons, matched for age and gender. Correlational analyses were performed to evaluate the links between empathy scores and psychopathological measures.Results: Patients scored significantly lower than HC on cognitive empathy (CE, while they did not differ from controls on affective empathy (AE. The deficit in CE was not related to either disease severity nor was it related to associated psychopathology.Conclusion: These results, albeit preliminary, suggest that a dysfunctional pattern of CE capacity may be a stable trait of AN-R that should be taken into account not only for the clinical management, but also in preventive and therapeutic intervention.Keywords: anorexia nervosa-restricting type, cognitive empathy, affective empathy, female adolescents, Interpersonal Reactivity Index

Mood disorders in the elderly: prevalence, functional impact, and management challenges

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Valiengo LCL

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Leandro da Costa Lane Valiengo,1 Florindo Stella,1,2 Orestes Vicente Forlenza1 1Laboratory of Neuroscience (LIM-27, Department and Institute of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, Sao Paulo, 2Biosciences Institute, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Rio Claro, Brazil Abstract: Despite the lower prevalence of severe mood disorders in the elderly as compared to younger adults, late-life depression and bipolar disorder (BD are more strongly associated with negative outcomes related to the presence of medical comorbidities, cognitive deficits, and increased suicide risk and overall mortality. The mechanisms that contribute to these associations are probably multifactorial, involving pathological factors related directly and indirectly to the disease itself, ranging from biological to psychosocial factors. Most of the accumulated knowledge on the nature of these associations derives from naturalistic and observational studies, and controlled data are still scarce. Nonetheless, there has clearly been a recent growth of the scientific interest on late-life BD and geriatric depression. In the present study, we review the most relevant studies on prevalence, clinical presentation, and cognitive/functional impact of mood disorders in elderly. Several clinical–epidemiological studies were dedicated to the study of the prevalence of mood disorders in old age in distinct settings; however, fewer studies investigated the underlying neurobiological findings and treatment specificities in late-life depression and BD. In the present study, we further discuss the implications of these findings on the management of mood disorders in older adults. Keywords: depression, bipolar disorder, psychogeriatric, geriatric, old age, older adults

Complex offspring size effects: variations across life stages and between species.

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Sun, Zhao; Hamel, Jean-François; Parrish, Christopher C; Mercier, Annie

2015-03-01

Classical optimality models of offspring size and number assume a monotonically increasing relationship between offspring size and performance. In aquatic organisms with complex life cycles, the size-performance function is particularly hard to grasp because measures of performance are varied and their relationships with size may not be consistent throughout early ontogeny. Here, we examine size effects in premetamorphic (larval) and postmetamorphic (juvenile) stages of brooding marine animals and show that they vary contextually in strength and direction during ontogeny and among species. Larger offspring of the sea anemone Urticina felina generally outperformed small siblings at the larval stage (i.e., greater settlement and survival rates under suboptimal conditions). However, results differed when analyses were conducted at the intrabrood versus across-brood levels, suggesting that the relationship between larval size and performance is mediated by parentage. At the juvenile stage (15 months), small offspring were less susceptible than large ones to predation by subadult nudibranchs and both sizes performed similarly when facing adult nudibranchs. In a sympatric species with a different life history (Aulactinia stella), all juveniles suffered similar predation rates by subadult nudibranchs, but smaller juveniles performed better (lower mortalities) when facing adult nudibranchs. Size differences in premetamorphic performance of U. felina were linked to total lipid contents of larvae, whereas size-specific predation of juvenile stages followed the general predictions of the optimal foraging strategy. These findings emphasize the challenge in gathering empirical support for a positive monotonic size-performance function in taxa that exhibit complex life cycles, which are dominant in the sea.

Forecasting municipal solid waste generation in a fast-growing urban region with system dynamics modeling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dyson, Brian; Chang, N.-B.

2005-01-01

Both planning and design of municipal solid waste management systems require accurate prediction of solid waste generation. Yet achieving the anticipated prediction accuracy with regard to the generation trends facing many fast-growing regions is quite challenging. The lack of complete historical records of solid waste quantity and quality due to insufficient budget and unavailable management capacity has resulted in a situation that makes the long-term system planning and/or short-term expansion programs intangible. To effectively handle these problems based on limited data samples, a new analytical approach capable of addressing socioeconomic and environmental situations must be developed and applied for fulfilling the prediction analysis of solid waste generation with reasonable accuracy. This study presents a new approach - system dynamics modeling - for the prediction of solid waste generation in a fast-growing urban area based on a set of limited samples. To address the impact on sustainable development city wide, the practical implementation was assessed by a case study in the city of San Antonio, Texas (USA). This area is becoming one of the fastest-growing regions in North America due to the economic impact of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The analysis presents various trends of solid waste generation associated with five different solid waste generation models using a system dynamics simulation tool - Stella[reg]. Research findings clearly indicate that such a new forecasting approach may cover a variety of possible causative models and track inevitable uncertainties down when traditional statistical least-squares regression methods are unable to handle such issues

Benign endometrial proliferations mimicking malignancies: a review of problematic entities in small biopsy specimens.

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Ip, Philip Pun-Ching

2018-02-14

Benign proliferations that mimic malignancies are commonly encountered during the course of assessment of small and fragmented endometrial samples. Although benign, endometrial epithelial metaplasias often coexist with premalignant or malignant lesions causing diagnostic confusion. The difficulty with mucinous metaplasia lies in its distinction from atypical mucinous glandular proliferations and mucinous carcinomas, which are associated with significant interobserver variability. Papillary proliferation of the endometrium is commonly associated with hormonal drugs and endometrial polyps and is characterised by papillae with fibrovascular cores covered by epithelial cells without cytologic atypia. They are classified into simple or complex papillary proliferations depending on the architectural complexity and extent of proliferation. Complex papillary proliferations are associated with a high risk of concurrent or subsequent hyperplasia with atypia/carcinoma. Papillary proliferations may have coexisting epithelial metaplasias and, most commonly, mucinous metaplasia and syncytial papillary change. Those with striking mucinous metaplasia overlap morphologically with papillary mucinous metaplasia. The latter has been proposed as a precursor of endometrial mucinous carcinoma. Misinterpreting the Arias-Stella reaction as a malignant or premalignant lesion is more likely to occur if the pathologist is unaware that the patient is pregnant or on hormonal drugs. Endometrial hyperplasia with secretory changes may occasionally be difficult to distinguish from the torturous and crowded glands of a late secretory endometrium. Endometrial polyps may have abnormal features that can be misinterpreted as endometrial hyperplasia or Mullerian adenosarcoma. Awareness of these benign endometrial proliferations and their common association with hormonal medication or altered endogenous hormonal levels will help prevent the over-diagnosis of premalignant and malignant lesions.

Report of Activity - 1997

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hammer, Philippe

1999-01-01

The Report of Activity on 1997 published by Waste Management Division (Direction chargee de la Gestion des Dechets) of French Atomic Energy Authority (Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique) presents the current activity in the framework of CEA Recovery Plan for Civil Centers initiated in 1991, aiming at managing all the radioactive problems issued from its Research and Development Activities. This plan covers three principal directions: management of radioactive wastes resulting from CEA research activities, reprocessing or storing the spent or un-used fuel resulting from research or prototype reactors, recovery measures and dismantling of nuclear facilities. In the field of radioactive waste management important projects, assuring the waste processing equipment, were developed in 1997 at Saclay (STELLA Installation), Cadarache (AGATE Installation) and Marcoule (ATENA Installation). The Radioactive Waste Storage TFA was put into operation at Cadarache. In the field of out-of-use fuel, in 1997 the fuel reprocessing units CARAMEL and UNGG were finished while as temporary storage for fuels waiting to be processed the CASCAD facility at Cadarache was assigned. Finally, concerning the recovery/dismantling activities, priority was granted to recover: the Radiochemical Lab. at Fontenay, the pilot workshop and UP1 plant of COGEMA at Marcoule, the EL4 reactor (in a joint action with EDF), and the AT1 pilot workshop at Cherbourg. The report is structured on five chapters with the following content: 1. The radioactive wastes; 2. The out-of-use fuels; 3. The dismantling of the definitively stopped installations; 4. The waste management at DAM (Direction des Applications Militaires); 5. Recovery activities at Marcoule

Planning for Regional Water Resources in Northwest China Using a Dynamic Simulation Model

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, C.; Kalra, A.; Ahmad, S.

2014-12-01

Problem of water scarcity is prominent in northwest China due to its typical desert climate. Exceedence of sustainable yield of groundwater resources has resulted in groundwater depletion, which has raised a series of issues such as drying wells, increasing pumping costs and environmental damage. With a rapid agricultural and economic development, population increase has added extra stress on available water resources by increasing municipal, agricultural and industrial demands. This necessitates efficient water resources management strategies with better understanding of the causes of water stress and options for sustainable development of economy and management of environment. This study focuses on simulating the water supply and demand, under the influence of changing climate, for Shanshan County, located in northwest of China. A dynamic simulation model is developed using the modeling tool Stella for monthly water balance for the period ranging from 2000-2030. Different future water demand and supply scenarios are developed to represent: (1) base scenario- with current practices; (2) change of the primary water source; (3) improvement of irrigation efficiency; (4) reduction of irrigation area; and (5) reduction of industrial water demand. The results indicate that besides growing demand, the low water use efficiency and low level of water reuse are the primary concerns for water scarcity. Groundwater recharge and abstraction could be balanced by 2030, by reducing industrial demand by 50% and using high efficiency irrigation for agriculture. The model provided a better understanding of the effect of different policies and can help in identifying water resources management strategies.

A system dynamics model for stock and flow of tritium in fusion power plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kasada, Ryuta, E-mail: r-kasada@iae.kyoto-u.ac.jp [Institute of Advanced Energy, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Kwon, Saerom [Institute of Advanced Energy, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Tokai-mura, Naka-gun, Ibaraki-ken 319-1195 (Japan); Konishi, Satoshi [Institute of Advanced Energy, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Sakamoto, Yoshiteru; Yamanishi, Toshihiko; Tobita, Kenji [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Rokkasho-mura, Kamikita-gun, Aomori-ken 039-3212 (Japan)

2015-10-15

Highlights: • System dynamics model of tritium fuel cycle was developed for analyzing stock and flow of tritium in fusion power plants. • Sensitivity of tritium build-up to breeding ratio parameters has been assessed to two plant concepts having 3 GW and 1.5 GW fusion power. • D-D start-up absolutely without initial loading of tritium is possible for both of the 3 GW and 1.5 GW fusion power plant concepts. • Excess stock of tritium is generated by the steady state operation with the value of tritium breeding ratio over unity. - Abstract: In order to analyze self-efficiency of tritium fuel cycle (TFC) and share the systems thinking of TFC among researchers and engineers in the vast area of fusion reactor technology, we develop a system dynamics (SD) TFC model using a commercial software STELLA. The SD-TFC model is illustrated as a pipe diagram which consists of tritium stocks, such as plasma, fuel clean up, isotope separation, fueling with storage and blanket, and pipes connecting among them. By using this model, we survey a possibility of D-D start-up without initial loading of tritium on two kinds of fusion plant having different plasma parameters. The D-D start-up scenario can reduce the necessity of initial loading of tritium through the production in plasma by D-D reaction and in breeding blanket by D-D neutron. The model is also used for considering operation scenario to avoid excess stock of tritium which must be produced at tritium breeding ratio over unity.

Determination of the most appropriate method for extrapolating overall survival data from a placebo-controlled clinical trial of lenvatinib for progressive, radioiodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer

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Tremblay G

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Gabriel Tremblay,1 Christopher Livings,2 Lydia Crowe,2 Venediktos Kapetanakis,2 Andrew Briggs3 1Global Health Economics and Health Technology Assessment, Eisai Inc., Woodcliff Lake, NJ, USA; 2Health Economics, Decision Resources Group, Bicester, Oxfordshire, 3Health Economics and Health Technology Assessment, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK Background: Cost-effectiveness models for the treatment of long-term conditions often require information on survival beyond the period of available data. Objectives: This paper aims to identify a robust and reliable method for the extrapolation of overall survival (OS in patients with radioiodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer receiving lenvatinib or placebo. Methods: Data from 392 patients (lenvatinib: 261, placebo: 131 from the SELECT trial are used over a 34-month period of follow-up. A previously published criterion-based approach is employed to ascertain credible estimates of OS beyond the trial data. Parametric models with and without a treatment covariate and piecewise models are used to extrapolate OS, and a holistic approach, where a series of statistical and visual tests are considered collectively, is taken in determining the most appropriate extrapolation model. Results: A piecewise model, in which the Kaplan–Meier survivor function is used over the trial period and an extrapolated tail is based on the Exponential distribution, is identified as the optimal model. Conclusion: In the absence of long-term survival estimates from clinical trials, survival estimates often need to be extrapolated from the available data. The use of a systematic method based on a priori determined selection criteria provides a transparent approach and reduces the risk of bias. The extrapolated OS estimates will be used to investigate the potential long-term benefits of lenvatinib in the treatment of radioiodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer patients and

Angle alignment evokes perceived depth and illusory surfaces.

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Shapley, Robert; Maertens, Marianne

2008-01-01

There is a distinct visual process that triggers the perception of illusory surfaces and contours along the intersections of aligned, zigzag line patterns. Such illusory contours and surfaces are qualitatively different from illusory contours of the Kanizsa type. The illusory contours and surfaces in this case are not the product of occlusion and do not imply occlusion of one surface by another. Rather, the aligned angles in the patterns are combined by the visual system into the perception of a fold or a 3-D corner, as of stairs on a staircase or a wall ending on a floor. The depth impression is ambiguous and reversible like the Necker cube. Such patterns were used by American Indian artists of the Akimel O'odham (Pima) tribe in basketry, and also by modern European and American artists like Josef Albers, Bridget Riley, Victor Vasarely, and Frank Stella. Our research aims to find out what manipulations of the visual image affect perceived depth in such patterns in order to learn about the perceptual mechanisms. Using paired comparisons, we find that human observers perceive depth in such patterns if, and only if, lines in adjacent regions of the patterns join to form angles, and also if, and only if, the angles are aligned precisely to be consistent with a fold or 3-D corner. The amount of perceived depth is graded, depending on the steepness and the density of angles in the aligned-angle pattern. The required precision of the alignment implies that early retinotopic visual cortical areas may be involved in this perceptual behavior, but the linkage of form with perceived depth suggests involvement of higher cortical areas as well.

Molecular assessment, characterization, and differentiation of theca stem cells imply the presence of mesenchymal and pluripotent stem cells in sheep ovarian theca layer.

Science.gov (United States)

Adib, Samane; Valojerdi, Mojtaba Rezazadeh

2017-10-01

The ability of ovarian theca stem cells to differentiate into oocyte and theca cells may lead to a major advancement in reproductive biology and infertility treatments. However, there is little information about function, growth and differentiation potential of these immature cells. In this study adult sheep theca stem cells (TSCs) characteristics, and differentiation potential into osteocyte-like cells (OSLCs), adipocyte-like cells (ALCs), theca progenitor-like cells (TPCs), and oocyte-like cells (OLCs) were investigated. TSCs were isolated, cultured, and compared with mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), fibroblast cells (FCs), and pluripotent embryonic ovarian cells (EO). Adherent TSCs were morphologically similar to FCs. Cell cycle analysis showed high proliferation capacity of TSCs. TSCs were positive for the mesenchymal cells surface markers, and also expressed POU5F1. Differentiation potential of TSCs into OSLCs and ALCs were confirmed by alizarin red and oil red staining respectively. OSTEOCALCIN and COL1 were expressed in OSLCs. ALCs were positive for PPARα and LPL. TPCs expressed theca specific genes (GLI2, GLI3, PTCH1, CYP17A1, 3β-HSD and LHR) and secreted testosterone, dehydroepiandrostenedione (DHEA), androstenedione, progesterone and estradiol. Lipid droplets in these steroid cells were viewed by oil red staining. OLCs expressed oocyte-specific marker genes including, ZP3, ZP2, GDF9, SYCP3, PRDM1, STELLA, FRAGILIS, DAZL, as well as POU5F1, and showed separated sphere structure. Our results indicated that TSCs derived from ovarian follicles contain MSCs and pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) that can be differentiated into lineages of mesenchymal origin and are capable of differentiation into TPCs and OLCs under in vitro conditions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of DC/DC switching power regulation with small-scale integrated inductors for PET/MR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Biagi, Laura [IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris and Fondazione Imago 7, Calambrone, Pisa (Italy); Bisogni, Maria Giuseppina; Camarlinghi, Niccolo [Department of Physics, University of Pisa and INFN, Pisa (Italy); Costagli, Mauro [IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris and Fondazione Imago 7, Calambrone, Pisa (Italy); Sportelli, Giancarlo [Department of Physics, University of Pisa and INFN, Pisa (Italy); Tosetti, Michela [IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris and Fondazione Imago 7, Calambrone, Pisa (Italy); Del Guerra, Alberto; Belcari, Nicola [Department of Physics, University of Pisa and INFN, Pisa (Italy)

2015-05-18

We present a feasibility study that has been carried out to determine the best power regulation strategy for the PET front-end electronics of the trimodal PET/MRI/EEG TRIMAGE scanner. Conventional power regulation strategies cannot be applied to PET/MRI because standard switching regulators stop working in presence of a high magnetic field. At the state of the art, linear regulators are used instead. However, linear regulators are inefficient and might not allow to fulfill power and thermal constraints if the electronics becomes more power demanding, such as in the case of FPGA based front-ends. Very recently, a new generation of switching power supplies has been introduced for EMI critical applications where the discrete inductor energy buffer is not allowed. These supplies have very small footprint, need few biasing peripherals and they use on-chip integrated inductors for energy storage. These switching power regulators coupled with an adequate EMI shield could be an achievable power solution for our PET front-end electronics. Test procedures for Enpirion. EN2390QI and the Enpirion. EN6347QI switching power regulators are presented. Measurements have been performed at GE 1.5T MRI scanner with the support of IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris. All the board have been tested in two different configurations: with and without an additional EMI shield. Performance of these two switching power regulators have been compared with a linear power regulator (Enpirion. EY1501DI). Output voltage, output current and temperature have been measured. The stability of these three main characteristic will be presented in different operation conditions and will be discussed (output voltage vs. temperature, output voltage vs. output current and output current vs. temperature).

Does rubella cause autism: a 2015 reappraisal?

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Jill eHutton

2016-02-01

Full Text Available In the 1970s, Stella Chess found a high prevalence of autism in children with congenital rubella syndrome (CRS, 200 times that of the general population at the time. Many researchers quote this fact to add proof to the current theory that maternal infection with immune system activation in pregnancy leads to autism in the offspring. This rubella and autism association is presented with the notion that rubella has been eliminated in today’s world. CRS cases are no longer typically seen, yet autistic children often share findings of CRS including deafness, congenital heart defects and to a lesser extent visual changes. Autistic children commonly have hyperactivity and spasticity, as do CRS children. Both autistic and CRS individuals may develop type 1 diabetes as young adults. Neuropathology of CRS infants may reveal cerebral vasculitis with narrowed lumens and cerebral necrosis. Neuroradiologic findings of children with CRS show calcifications, periventricular leukomalacia, and dilated perivascular spaces. Neuroradiology of autism has also demonstrated hyperintensities, leukomalacia and prominent perivascular spaces. PET studies of autistic individuals exhibit decreased perfusion to areas of the brain similarly affected by rubella. In both autism and CRS, certain changes in the brain have implicated the immune system. Several children with autism lack antibodies to rubella, as do children with CRS. These numerous similarities increase the probability of an association between rubella virus and autism.Rubella and autism cross many ethnicities in many countries. Contrary to current belief, rubella has not been eradicated and globally affects up to 5% of pregnant women. Susceptibility continues as vaccines are not given worldwide and are not fully protective. Rubella might still cause autism, even in vaccinated populations.

Human second trimester amniotic fluid cells are able to create embryoid body-like structures in vitro and to show typical expression profiles of embryonic and primordial germ cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Antonucci, Ivana; Di Pietro, Roberta; Alfonsi, Melissa; Centurione, Maria Antonietta; Centurione, Lucia; Sancilio, Silvia; Pelagatti, Francesca; D'Amico, Maria Angela; Di Baldassarre, Angela; Piattelli, Adriano; Tetè, Stefano; Palka, Giandomenico; Borlongan, Cesar V; Stuppia, Liborio

2014-01-01

Human amniotic fluid-derived stem cells (AFSCs) represent a novel class of broadly multipotent stem cells sharing characteristics of both embryonic and adult stem cells. However, both the origin of these cells and their actual properties in terms of pluripotent differentiation potential are still debated. In order to verify the presence of features of pluripotency in human second trimester AFSCs, we have investigated the ability of these cells to form in vitro three-dimensional aggregates, known as embryoid bodies (EBs), and to express specific genes of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and primordial germ cells (PGCs). EBs were obtained after 5 days of AFSC culture in suspension and showed positivity for alkaline phosphatase (AP) staining and for specific markers of pluripotency (OCT4 and SOX2). Moreover, EB-derived cells showed the expression of specific transcripts of the three germ layers. RT-PCR analysis, carried out at different culture times (second, third, fourth, fifth, and eighth passages), revealed the presence of specific markers of ESCs (such as FGF4 and DAPPA4), as well as of markers typical of PGCs and, in particular, genes involved in early stages of germ cell development (Fragilis, Stella, Vasa, c-Kit, Rnf17). Finally, the expression of genes related to the control of DNA methylation (DNMT3A, DNMT3b1, DNMT1, DNMT3L, MBD1, MBD2, MBD3, MDB4, MeCP2), as well as the lack of inactivation of the X-chromosome in female samples, was also demonstrated. Taken together, these data provide further evidence for the presence of common features among human AFSCs, PGCs, and ESCs.

Does Rubella Cause Autism: A 2015 Reappraisal?

Science.gov (United States)

Hutton, Jill

2016-01-01

In the 1970s, Stella Chess found a high prevalence of autism in children with congenital rubella syndrome (CRS), 200 times that of the general population at the time. Many researchers quote this fact to add proof to the current theory that maternal infection with immune system activation in pregnancy leads to autism in the offspring. This rubella and autism association is presented with the notion that rubella has been eliminated in today's world. CRS cases are no longer typically seen; yet, autistic children often share findings of CRS including deafness, congenital heart defects, and to a lesser extent visual changes. Autistic children commonly have hyperactivity and spasticity, as do CRS children. Both autistic and CRS individuals may develop type 1 diabetes as young adults. Neuropathology of CRS infants may reveal cerebral vasculitis with narrowed lumens and cerebral necrosis. Neuroradiological findings of children with CRS show calcifications, periventricular leukomalacia, and dilated perivascular spaces. Neuroradiology of autism has also demonstrated hyperintensities, leukomalacia, and prominent perivascular spaces. PET studies of autistic individuals exhibit decreased perfusion to areas of the brain similarly affected by rubella. In both autism and CRS, certain changes in the brain have implicated the immune system. Several children with autism lack antibodies to rubella, as do children with CRS. These numerous similarities increase the probability of an association between rubella virus and autism. Rubella and autism cross many ethnicities in many countries. Contrary to current belief, rubella has not been eradicated and globally affects up to 5% of pregnant women. Susceptibility continues as vaccines are not given worldwide and are not fully protective. Rubella might still cause autism, even in vaccinated populations.

Male and female rat bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells are different in terms of the expression of germ cell specific genes.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghasemzadeh-Hasankolaei, Mohammad; Eslaminejad, Mohammadreza Baghaban; Batavani, Roozali; Ghasemzadeh-Hasankolaei, Maryam

2015-06-01

Recent studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), under appropriate conditions, can differentiate into cell types including germ cells (GCs). These studies also show that MSCs without any induction express some GC-specific genes innately. Moreover, one report suggests that female MSCs have a greater tendency to differentiate into female instead of male GCs. Therefore, for the first time, this study attempts to assay and determine the differences between the expression levels of some important GC-specific genes (Stra8, Vasa, Dazl, Stella, Piwil2, Oct4, Fragilis, Rnf17 and c-Kit) in male and female bone marrow (BM)-MSCs of rats. BM sampling of the rate was performed by a newly established method. We cultured rat BM samples, then characterized male and female MSCs according to their adhesion onto the culture dish, their differentiation potential into bone, cartilage and fat cells, and phenotype analysis by flow cytometry. The expression of GC-specific genes and their expression levels were evaluated with reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and real-time RT-PCR. Our results showed that Dazl and Rnf17 did not express in the cells. The majority of examined genes, except Piwil2, expressed at almost the same levels in male and female MSCs. Piwil2 had higher expression in male MSCs which was probably related to the more prominent role of Piwil2 in the male GC development process. Male BM-MSCs appeared more prone to differentiate into male rather than female GCs. Additional research should be performed to determine the exact role of different genes in the male and female GC development process.

Predictive model of food intake of the Seabass Dicentrarchus labrax in closed aquaculture systems

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Allan T Souza

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Fish feeding is the main source of waste in aquaculture and is also responsible for most of the environmental impacts derived from this activity. The European Seabass Dicentrarchus labrax is one of the most farmed fishes in the continent, generating an important load of waste on the environment. The consumption of food in fishes is highly dependent on the water temperature and salinity, which create a source of variability on the amount of the ration consumed by fishes. This issue is often neglected by farmers, which aggravates the ration waste. The use of models in aquaculture is increasing in the recent years, and is an excellent tool to combine an increased production with the mitigation of environmental impacts. In this context, this study aimed at developing a predictive model of the D. labrax consumption rate in closed aquaculture systems. Based on the literature review we were able to develop a conceptual diagram and a prototype of the model using the STELLA software (isee®. The preliminary results indicated that the model was capable of predicting the ration consumption of the D. labrax according to the oscillations in the water temperature and salinity. The consumption rate and growth were higher at 21ºC and with a salinity of 28 psu. Laboratory assays are need to validate the models outputs, and they are scheduled to start in October 2015. Finally, the model’s structure, equations, inputs and outputs were integrated into an easy-to-use software developed by the FoodInTech® company, that will help farmers to increase their yields and reduce the waste of ration and the nutrient load on the environment.

Envisioning Metropolis—New York as Seen, Imaged and Imagined

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Heinz ICKSTADT

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Cet article esquisse d’abord la géographie de New York dans la littérature depuis les quartiers de la Bowery et du Lower East Side jusqu’à Harlem, puis ouvre l’espace géographique à des chapitres consacrés à l’histoire littéraire de New York, du modernisme et de sa métropole mythique (dans les œuvres de Dos Passos, Joseph Stella et Hart Crane à l’effondrement de la vision d’un sublime urbain au cours de la Grande dépression. Il s’intéresse ensuite à des versions plus ludiques de l’urbain dans des œuvres du Pop Art et dans des textes littéraires des années 70 et 80, avant de s’orienter vers la fiction contemporaine où la tradition moderne du sublime urbain est déconstruite et où la métropole est recréée comme faisant partie d’un vaste système de renseignements transnationaux, de flux monétaires globaux et de mouvements migratoires. Dans les romans de Don DeLillo, Cristina García, Kiran Desai et Colson Whitehead, la ville est vue comme un espace d’interconnexion abstrait, comme un lieu d’aliénation, en ses marges sociales et économiques, et comme une zone de conflits culturels où il est néanmoins possible de mener une existence culturelle intermédiaire. New York donne alors lieu à des expériences concrètes et traumatiques, mais elle est aussi, paradoxalement, reconnue comme un lieu d’appartenance. Ainsi, cet article conçoit l’histoire comme suivant deux lignes parallèles, orientées vers une narration locale (et/ou ethnique ou vers des récits tentant d’envisager la ville selon une perspective totalisante. Même si la tradition d’un sublime urbain tend à perdre de son allant au cours du vingtième siècle, elle demeure néanmoins un contrepoint marquant dans l’histoire des représentations littéraires de New York.The essay first sketches the geography of literary New York from the Bowery and the Lower East Side to Harlem; then fills out the geographic space with chapters of

Evaluation of a dynamic simulation model for milk production systems Avaliação de modelo dinâmico de simulação de sistemas de produção de leite

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Daniel de Noronha Figueiredo Vieira da Cunha

2010-04-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to develop and to evaluate a dynamic simulation model, with stochastic components in order to assess milk production systems. The simulation model was developed by using STELLA 9.0, ZooCalc 1.0 and electronic data sheets. The physical structure of the herd was divided into 15 interlinked modules that represented categories or subdivisions of categories. Mathematical models obtained from the literature were used to simulate the body weight of growing and lactating animals and milk production and milk composition. Electronic data sheets were used to calculate the nutritional requirements and dietary balance. After cost minimization, each feed was evaluated by using ZooCalc 1.0. Some average responses of farm size, zootechnical and economic index, the change in the area used for com silage production, the calving interval and age at first insemination were obtained to evaluate whether the simulation model was working consistently with the expected. To assess the capacity of the model to gene rate simulated values that approach reality, the degree of linear association was measured between the values generated by the model and the values observed in practice. Sensitivity analyses showed that the values produced by the simulation model were in agreement with the expected results, in response to changes in the area of com crop used for com silage production, the calving interval and the age at first insemination. There was correlation between the values generated by the simulation model and the values observed in practice and the degree of linear association for the variables could be considered high.Objetivou-se desenvolver e avaliar um modelo dinâmico de simulação com componentes estocásticos para avaliação de sistemas de produção de leite. O modelo de simulação foi desenvolvido utilizando-se os programas STELLA 9.0, ZooCalc 1.0 e planilhas eletrónicas. A estrutura física do rebanho foi dividida em 15 m

Effects of consuming alcohol mixed with energy drinks versus consuming alcohol only on overall alcohol consumption and negative alcohol-related consequences

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de Haan L

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Lydia de Haan,1 Hein A de Haan,2,3 Job van der Palen,4,5 Berend Olivier,1 Joris C Verster11Utrecht University, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacology, Utrecht, 2Tactus Addiction Treatment, Deventer, 3Nijmegen Institute for Scientist-Practitioners in Addiction, Nijmegen, 4Medical School Twente, Medisch Spectrum Twente, Enschede, 5Department of Research Methodology, Measurement, and Data Analysis, University of Twente, Enschede, The NetherlandsBackground: The aim of this study was to examine differences in alcohol consumption and its consequences when consumed alone and when mixed with energy drinks.Methods: A survey was conducted among Dutch students at Utrecht University and the College of Utrecht. We collected data on alcohol consumption and alcohol-related consequences of alcohol consumed alone and/or alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AMED. The data were analyzed using a retrospective within-subject design, comparing occasions when subjects consumed AMED with those when they consumed alcohol only in the past 30 days.Results: A representative sample of 6002 students completed the survey, including 1239 who consumed AMED. Compared with consuming alcohol only, when consuming AMED, students consumed significantly fewer alcoholic drinks on an average drinking day (6.0 versus 5.4, respectively, and reported significantly fewer drinking days in the previous month (9.2 versus 1.4, significantly fewer days being drunk (1.9 versus 0.5, and significantly fewer occasions of consuming more than four (female/five (male alcoholic drinks (4.7 versus 0.9. The maximum number of mixed alcoholic drinks (4.5 in the previous month was significantly lower when compared with occasions when they consumed alcohol only (10.7. Accordingly, the mean duration of a drinking session was significantly shorter when mixing alcoholic drinks (4.0 versus 6.0 hours. Finally, when consuming AMED, significantly fewer alcohol-related consequences were

Book Reviews

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Pels

1995-04-01

Full Text Available - Freek Colombijn, Hisao Furukawa, Coastal wetlands of Indonesia; Environment, subsistence and exploitation. Translated by Peter Hawkes. Kyoto: Kyoto University Press, 1994, vii + 219 pp., tables, figures, index. - C. van Dijk, Virginia Matheson Hooker, Culture and society in New Order Indonesia, Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press, 1993, xxiii + 302 pp. - M.R. Fernando, Frans van Baardewijk, The cultivation system, Java 1834-1880, Changing Economy in Indonesia 14. Amsterdam: Royal Tropical Institute, 1993, 327 pp. - Bernice D. de Jong Boers, Jacqueline Vel, The Uma-economy; Indigenous economics and development work in Lawonda, Sumba (Eastern Indonesia. PhD thesis Landbouwuniversiteit Wageningen, 1994, viii + 283 pp. Maps, tables, photographs, glossary. - Marijke J. Klokke, Lydia Kieven, Arjunas Askese; Ihre Darstellung im altjavanischen Arjunawiwaha und auf ausgewählten ostjavanischen Reliefs. Kölner Südostasien Studien Bd. 2. Bonn: Holos, 1994, 154 pp. - Marijke J. Klokke, Edi Sedyawati, Ganesa statuary of the Kadiri and Sinhasari periods; A study of art history. Verhandelingen van het Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 160. Leiden: KITLV Press 1994. - Gijs Koster, Annabel Teh Gallop, The legacy of the Malay letter - Warisan warkah Melayu. With an essay by E. Ulrich Kratz. London: British Library for the National Archives of Malaysia, 1994, 240 pp. - Stephen Markel, Marijke J. Klokke, Ancient Indonesian Sculpture, Verhandelingen van het Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 165. Leiden: KITLV Press 1994, vii + 210 pp., Pauline Lunsingh Scheurleer (eds. - Anke Niehof, Ingrid Rudie, Visible women in East coast Malay society; On the reproduction of gender in ceremonial, school and market. Oslo: Scandinavian University Press, 1994, xi + 337 pp. - Peter Pels, Nicholas Thomas, Colonialism’s culture; Anthropology, travel and government. Cambridge: Polity Press, 1994, xi + 238 pp. - Peter Pels, Nicholas B

Citations Prize 2009 Citations Prize 2009

Science.gov (United States)

Webb, Steve; Harris, Simon

2009-12-01

Physics in Medicine & Biology (PMB) awards its 'Citations Prize' to the authors of the original research paper that has received the most citations in the preceding five years (according to the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI)). The lead author of the winning paper is presented with the Rotblat Medal (named in honour of Professor Sir Joseph Rotblat who was the second—and longest serving—Editor of PMB, from 1961-1972). The winning co-authors each receive a certificate. Photograph of the 2009 Citations Prize winners Some of the winning authors with their certificates, and Christian Morel with the Rotblat Medal, at the award ceremony in Orsay, near Paris. From left to right are Corinne Groiselle, Lydia Maigne, David Brasse, Irène Buvat, Dimitris Visvikis, Giovanni Santin, Uwe Pietrzyk, Pierre-François Honore, Christian Morel, Sébastien Jan and Arion Chatziioannou. The winner of the 2009 Citations Prize for the paper which has received the most citations in the previous 5 years (2004-2008) is GATE: a simulation toolkit for PET and SPECT Authors: S Jan, G Santin, D Strul, S Staelens, K Assié, D Autret, S Avner, R Barbier, M Bardiès, P M Bloomfield, D Brasse, V Breton, P Bruyndonckx, I Buvat, A F Chatziioannou, Y Choi, Y H Chung, C Comtat, D Donnarieix, L Ferrer, S J Glick, C J Groiselle, D Guez, P-F Honore, S Kerhoas-Cavata, A S Kirov, V Kohli, M Koole, M Krieguer, D J van der Laan, F Lamare, G Largeron, C Lartizien, D Lazaro, M C Maas, L Maigne, F Mayet, F Melot, C Merheb, E Pennacchio, J Perez, U Pietrzyk, F R Rannou, M Rey, D R Schaart, C R Schmidtlein, L~Simon, T Y Song, J-M Vieira, D Visvikis, R Van de Walle, E Wieörs and C Morel Reference: S Jan et al 2004 Phys. Med. Biol. 49 4543-61 Since its publication in 2004 this article has received over 200 citations. This extremely high figure is a testament to the great influence and usefulness of the work to the nuclear medicine community. More discussion of the winning paper can be found on

Potential role of enzastaurin in the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory advanced cutaneous T-cell lymphomas: a review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katz DA

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Deborah A Katz, Janet MD Plate, Sunita Nathan, Lydia UshaDivision of Hematology and Oncology, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USAAbstract: Cutaneous T-cell lymphomas (CTCLs are rare extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphomas characterized by neoplastic T-lymphocyte accumulation in the skin. The two most common types of CTCLs are mycosis fungoides and the leukemic variant, Sézary syndrome. Prognosis of CTCLs depends on the stage, with a poor prognosis in advanced-stage disease. A number of agents have recently been developed for the treatment of CTCLs: chemotherapeutic agents such as pralatrexate, interferon-alpha, retinoids such as bexarotene, monoclonal antibodies such as alemtuzumab, and histone deacetylase inhibitors such as vorinostat and romidepsin. Nevertheless, there is no cure for CTCLs except for allogeneic stem cell transplant. A promising new drug is enzastaurin. Enzastaurin is a novel serine/threonine kinase inhibitor that binds to protein kinase C-β (PKC-β and inhibits the phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K/AKT/phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN signaling pathway. Enzastaurin induces apoptosis and inhibits angiogenesis; it was also shown to suppress growth of CTCL cell lines in vitro. Given its low toxicity, enzastaurin has been tested against both solid tumors and hematologic malignancies. This article is focused on the potential role of enzastaurin in the treatment of CTCLs. A phase II multicenter trial evaluated enzastaurin monotherapy in patients with CTCLs. However, the results from this study were disappointing, demonstrating that enzastaurin had only modest clinical activity. Hence, enzastaurin is not currently developed for treating CTCLs. Potential strategies to improve enzastaurin efficacy against CTCLs are discussed: validation of enzastaurin targets such as PKC-β expression in CTCL lesions and or/blood; measurement of serum vascular endothelial growth factor levels; dose optimization; combining enzastaurin with

Higher education and children in immigrant families.

Science.gov (United States)

Baum, Sandy; Flores, Stella M

2011-01-01

The increasing role that immigrants and their children, especially those from Latin America, are playing in American society, Sandy Baum and Stella Flores argue, makes it essential that as many young newcomers as possible enroll and succeed in postsecondary education. Immigrant youths from some countries find the doors to the nation's colleges wide open. But other groups, such as those from Latin America, Laos, and Cambodia, often fail to get a postsecondary education. Immigration status itself is not a hindrance. The characteristics of the immigrants, such as their country of origin, race, and parental socioeconomic status, in addition to the communities, schools, and legal barriers that greet them in the United States, explain most of that variation. Postsecondary attainment rates of young people who come from low-income households and, regardless of income or immigration status, whose parents have no college experience are low across the board. Exacerbating the financial constraints is the reality that low-income students and those whose parents have little education are frequently ill prepared academically to succeed in college. The sharp rise in demand for skilled labor over the past few decades has made it more urgent than ever to provide access to postsecondary education for all. And policy solutions, say the authors, require researchers to better understand the differences among immigrant groups. Removing barriers to education and to employment opportunities for undocumented students poses political, not conceptual, problems. Providing adequate funding for postsecondary education through low tuition and grant aid is also straightforward, if not easy to accomplish. Assuring that Mexican immigrants and others who grow up in low-income communities have the opportunity to prepare themselves academically for college is more challenging. Policies to improve the elementary and secondary school experiences of all children are key to improving the postsecondary

[The characters and specific features of new human embryonic stem cells lines].

Science.gov (United States)

Krylova, T A; Kol'tsova, A M; Zenin, V V; Gordeeva, O F; Musorina, A S; Goriachaia, T S; Shlykova, S A; Kamenetskaia, Iu K; Pinaev, G P; Polianskaia, G G

2009-01-01

Four continuous human embryonic stem cell lines (SC1, SC2, SC3 and SC4), derived from the blastocysts has been described. The cell lines were cultivated on mitotically inactivated human feeder cells. The cell lines SC1 and SC2 have passed through 150 population doublings and the cell lines SC3 and SC4 -- near 120 populations doublings, which exceeds Hayflick limit sufficiently. These cell lines maintain high activity of alkaline phosphatase, expression of transcription factor OCT-4 and cell surface antigens (SSEA-4, TRA-1-60 and TRA-1-81), confirming their ESC status and human specificity. Immunofluorescent detection of antigens, characteristic of ectoderm, endoderm and mesoderm confirms the ability of these cells to retain their pluripotency under in vitro condition. PCR analysis revealed expression of six genes specific for pluripotent cells (OCT-4, NANOG, DPPA3/STELLA, TDGF/CRIPTO and LEFTYA). Correlation between the level of proliferative activity and the character of DNA-bound fluorescent staining was found. Fluorescent dyes, Hoechst 33342 and PI, produced diffuse staining of the nuclei in slowly proliferating cells of the SC1 and SC2 lines. In contrast, in actively proliferating cells of the SC3 and SC4 lines, the clear staining of the nuclei was observed. Upon changing the cultivation condition, proliferative activity of SC3 and SC4 lines decreased and became similar to that of SC1 and SC2 lines. The character of the fluorescent staining of all these lines was also shown to be similar. These results show that quality of the fluorescent staining with Hoechst 33342 and PI reflects the level of proliferation. Possible causes and mechanisms of this feature of human ESC are discussed.

Future trends in the supply and demand for radiation oncology physicists.

Science.gov (United States)

Mills, Michael D; Thornewill, Judah; Esterhay, Robert J

2010-04-12

Significant controversy surrounds the 2012 / 2014 decision announced by the Trustees of the American Board of Radiology (ABR) in October of 2007. According to the ABR, only medical physicists who are graduates of a Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Education Programs, Inc. (CAMPEP) accredited academic or residency program will be admitted for examination in the years 2012 and 2013. Only graduates of a CAMPEP accredited residency program will be admitted for examination beginning in the year 2014. An essential question facing the radiation oncology physics community is an estimation of supply and demand for medical physicists through the year 2020. To that end, a Demand & Supply dynamic model was created using STELLA software. Inputs into the model include: a) projected new cancer incidence and prevalence 1990-2020; b) AAPM member ages and retirement projections 1990-2020; c) number of ABR physics diplomates 1990-2009; d) number of patients per Qualified Medical Physicist from Abt Reports I (1995), II (2002) and III (2008); e) non-CAMPEP physicists trained 1990-2009 and projected through 2014; f) CAMPEP physicists trained 1993-2008 and projected through 2014; and g) working Qualified Medical Physicists in radiation oncology in the United States (1990-2007). The model indicates that the number of qualified medical physicists working in radiation oncology required to meet demand in 2020 will be 150-175 per year. Because there is some elasticity in the workforce, a portion of the work effort might be assumed by practicing medical physicists. However, the minimum number of new radiation oncology physicists (ROPs) required for the health of the profession is estimated to be 125 per year in 2020. The radiation oncology physics community should plan to build residency programs to support these numbers for the future of the profession.

STENCIL: Science Teaching European Network for Creativity and Innovation in Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Cattadori, M.; Magrefi, F.

2013-12-01

STENCIL is an european educational project funded with support of the European Commission within the framework of LLP7 (Lifelong Learning Programme) for a period of 3 years (2011 - 2013). STENCIL includes 21 members from 9 European countries (Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, France, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Turkey.) working together to contribute to the general objective of improving science teaching, by promoting innovative methodologies and creative solutions. Among the innovative methods adept a particolar interest is a joint partnership between a wide spectrum of type of institutions such as schools, school authorities, research centres, universities, science museums, and other organizations, representing differing perspectives on science education. STENCIL offers to practitioners in science education from all over Europe, a platform; the web portal - www.stencil-science.eu - that provides high visibility to schools and institutions involved in Comenius and other similar European funded projects in science education. STENCIL takes advantage of the positive results achieved by the former European projects STELLA - Science Teaching in a Lifelong Learning Approach (2007 - 2009) and GRID - Growing interest in the development of teaching science (2004-2006). The specific objectives of the project are : 1) to identify and promote innovative practices in science teaching through the publication of Annual Reports on Science Education; 2) to bring together science education practitioners to share different experiences and learn from each other through the organisation of periodical study visits and workshops; 3) to disseminate materials and outcomes coming from previous EU funded projects and from isolated science education initiatives through the STENCIL web portal, as well as through international conferences and national events. This contribution aims at explaining the main features of the project together with the achieved results during the project's 3 year

Dosimetry of skin-contact exposure to tritium gas contaminated surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Legare, M.

1990-12-01

The radiological hazards from tritium are usually associated with exposure to tritium oxide either by inhalation, ingestion or permeation through skin. However, exposure from skin contact with tritium gas contaminated surfaces represents a different radiological hazard in tritium removal facilities and future fusion power plants. Previous experiments on humans and more recent experiments on hairless rats at Chalk River Laboratories have shown that when a tritium gas-contaminated surface is brought into contact with intact skin, high concentrations of organically-bound tritium in urine and skin are observed which were not seen from single tritiated water (liquid or vapour form) contamination. The results of the rat experiments, which involved measurements of tritium activity in urine and skin, after contact with contaminated stainless steel, are described. These results are also compared to previous data from human experiments. The effect of various exposure conditions and different contaminated surfaces such as brass, aluminum and glass are analysed and related to the results from contaminated stainless steel exposure. Dosimetric models are being developed in order to improve the basis for dose assessment for this mode of tritium uptake. The presently studied model is explained along with the assumptions and methods involved in its derivation. The features of 'STELLA', the software program used to implement the model, are discussed. The methods used to estimate skin and whole body dose from a model are demonstrated. Finally, some experiments for improving the accuracy of the model are proposed. Briefly, this study compares the results from animal and human experiments as well as different exposure conditions, and determines the range of whole body and skin dose that may be involved from skin-contact intake. This information is essential for regulatory purposes particularly in the derivation of doses for skin-contact contamination. (15 figs., 7 tabs., 29 refs.)

Laparoscopic Surgery for the Treatment of Ectopic Pregnancy

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Hulusi B ZEYNELOGLU

2005-09-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the outcomes of laparoscopic surgery for the treatment of ectopic pregnancy Design: 43 women with ectopic pregnancy who underwent laparoscopic surgery in our department between 1996 and 2005 were included in this study.\tSetting: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, Baskent University, Ankara Patients: 43 women with ectopic pregnancy who underwent laparoscopic surgery Interventions: Laparoscopic surgery was performed the treatment of ectopic pregnancy Main Outcome Measures: Patients characteristics such as age, parity, gestational age at the time of diagnosis, symptoms, preoperative and postoperative serum _-hCG and hemoglobin levels, sonographic findings, type of laparoscopic surgery, blood transfusion, additional treatments, endometrial sampling and postoperative fertility status were recorded. The size and the location of myomas were obtained from the surgeon’s findings in the operative note. Preoperative and postoperative hemoglobin values, change in hemoglobin values, hemorrhage, blood transfusion, postoperative fewer, duration of operation and length of postoperative hospital stay were the main outcomes. RESULTS: Forty-three women with ectopic pregnancy who underwent laparoscopic surgery were included in this study. Patients were submitted usually with pelvic pain and abnormal vaginal bleeding. Adnexal mass and hemoperitoneum were seen by sonographic evaluation. Ampuller pregnancy was the most common. Most of patients had conservative surgery and 38% of patients underwent salpingectomy. 12 patient had blood transfusion and two ones underwent re-laparoscopy. After treatment 5 intrauterine pregnancies were occurred. Endometrial samplings usually defined as decidual en Aria stella reactions. Serum _-hCG levels were in normal range at the end of the month after the laparoscopy. CONCLUSION: In conclusion according to these findings, laparoscopic surgery remains the definitive and universal

Doing Your Literature Review - Traditional and Systematic Techniques Jill K Jesson Doing Your Literature Review - Traditional and Systematic Techniques , Lydia Matheson Fiona M Lacey £20.99 192pp 9781848601543 1848601549 [Formula: see text].

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Julie

2012-07-19

A PLETHORA of books has appeared over the past few years on writing literature reviews. However this one is definitely worth a second look. Written by a social scientist, a pharmaceutical scientist and a library scientist, the authors between them have a wealth of experience and authority on the subject.

Musarum et patriae fulgida stella suae. Inscenace Bohuslava Hasištejnského z Lobkovic a sebeidentifikační praktiky českých humanistů poloviny 16.století

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Storchová, Lucie

2007-01-01

Roč. 52, 1-4 (2007), s. 9-18 ISSN 0036-5351. [Bohuslav Hasištejnský z Lobkovic a kultura jeho doby. Praha, 25.05.2007] Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z90090514 Keywords : Bohuslav Hasištejnský of Lobkowicz * Renaissance Humanism * Bohemia Subject RIV: AB - History

Book Reviews

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Redactie KITLV

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Maximilian C. Forte; Ruins of Absence, Presence of Caribs: (PostColonial Representations of Aboriginality in Trinidad and Tobago (Neil L. Whitehead Nick Nesbitt; Voicing Memory: History and Subjectivity in French Caribbean Literature (H. Adlai Murdoch Camilla Stevens; Family and Identity in Contemporary Cuban and Puerto Rican Drama (Lydia Platón Jonathan Goldberg; Tempest in the Caribbean (Jerry Brotton Michael Chanan; Cuban Cinema (Tamara L. Falicov Gemma Tang Nain, Barbara Bailey (eds.; Gender Equality in the Caribbean: Reality or Illusion (A. Lynn Bolles Ernesto Sagás, Sintia E. Molina (eds.; Dominican Migration: Transnational Perspectives (Rosemary Polanco Christine M. Du Bois; Images of West Indian Immigrants in Mass Media: The Struggle for a Positive Ethnic Reputation (Dwaine Plaza Luis Raúl Cámara Fuertes; The Phenomenon of Puerto Rican Voting (Annabelle Conroy Philip Gould; Barbaric Traffic: Commerce and Antislavery in the Eighteenth-Century Atlantic World (William A. Pettigrew Laurent Dubois; Avengers of the New World: The Story of the Haitian Revolution (Yvonne Fabella Sibylle Fischer; Modernity Disavowed: Haiti and the Cultures of Slavery in the Age of Revolution (Ashli White Philip D. Morgan, Sean Hawkins (eds.; Black Experience and the British Empire (James Walvin Richard Smith; Jamaican Volunteers in the First World War: Race, Masculinity and the Development of National Consciousness (Linden Lewis Muriel McAvoy; Sugar Baron: Manuel Rionda and the Fortunes of Pre-Castro Cuba (Richard Sicotte Ned Sublette; Cuba and Its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo (Pedro Pérez Sarduy Frances Negrón-Muntaner; Boricua Pop: Puerto Ricans and the Latinization of American Culture (Halbert Barton Gordon Rohlehr; A Scuffling of Islands: Essays on Calypso (Stephen Stuempfle Shannon Dudley; Carnival Music in Trinidad: Experiencing Music, Expressing Culture (Donald R. Hill Jean

Multidisciplinary management of clear-cell renal cell carcinoma in Africa and the Middle East: current practice and recommendations for improvement

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Zekri J

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Jamal Zekri,1 Lydia M Dreosti,2 Marwan Ghosn,3 Emad Hamada,4 Mohamed Jaloudi,5 Ola Khorshid,6 Blaha Larbaoui7 1College of Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Alfaisal University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; 2Department of Medical Oncology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa; 3Faculty of Medicine Hematology, Oncology Department, Saint Joseph University, Beirut, Lebanon; 4Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Kasr Alainy, Cairo, Egypt; 5Oncology Hematology Department, Tawam Hospital, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; 6National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Kasr El Ainy, Cairo, Egypt; 7Oncology Service, Université Djillali Liabés, Sidi Bel Abbés, Algeria Abstract: The management of renal cell carcinoma (RCC has evolved considerably in recent years. This report represents the consensus of 22 relevant medical specialists from Africa and the Middle East region engaged in the management of RCC. Partial or radical nephrectomy is the standard of care for most patients with localized RCC. It is essential that patients are followed up appropriately after surgery to enable local and distant relapses to be identified and treated promptly. The treatment of advanced/metastatic disease has changed dramatically with the introduction of targeted therapies. Follow-up of these patients enables therapy optimization and assessment of response to treatment. There was universal agreement on the importance of management of RCC by a multidisciplinary team supported by a multidisciplinary tumor board. Barriers hindering this approach were identified. These included lack of awareness of the benefits of multidisciplinary team role, poor communication among relevant disciplines, time constraints, and specifics of private practice. Other challenges include shortage of expert specialists as urologists and oncologists and lack of local management guidelines in some countries. Solutions were proposed and discussed. Medical

The impact of internalizing symptoms on autistic traits in adolescents with restrictive anorexia nervosa

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Calderoni S

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Sara Calderoni,1,* Pamela Fantozzi,1,* Giulia Balboni,2 Veronica Pagni,1 Emilio Franzoni,3 Fabio Apicella,1 Antonio Narzisi,1 Sandra Maestro,1 Filippo Muratori1,4 1IRCCS Stella Maris Foundation, 2Department of Surgery, Medical, Molecular and Critical Area Pathology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; 3Child Neuropsychiatric Unit, Women, Children and Adolescents Health Department, University Hospital S Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy; 4Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy *These authors contributed equally to this work Background: Although previous studies indicated a positive association between restrictive anorexia-nervosa (AN-R and autistic traits, the potential interference of psychiatric internalizing comorbidity on this association is not yet fully investigated.Materials and methods: The aim of this study was to explore autistic traits and internalizing psychopathology in adolescents (age range: 11.7–17.2 years with AN-R. Twenty-five patients referred to two tertiary-care hospitals were compared to a large control group (N=170 with no differences in age and sex. AN-R patients and controls filled out instruments assessing autistic traits (autism spectrum quotient [AQ], psychopathology (youth self-report [YSR] 11–18, and eating patterns (eating attitude test [EAT]. In order to disentangle the possible mediating role of internalizing symptoms on autistic traits, two separate control groups (called True and False healthy control, both composed of 25 eating-problem-free participants were derived from the whole control group on the basis of the presence or absence of internalizing problems in the YSR.Results: AN-R patients scored significantly higher on AQ compared to the whole control group and to controls without internalizing problems (True HC, but these differences disappeared when only controls with internalizing problems (False HC were considered.Conclusion: Autistic traits in AN

The response of bean plants to UV-B radiation under different irradiances of background visible light

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cen, Y.P.; Bornman, J.F.

1990-01-01

Plants of Phaseolus vulgaris L. (cv. Stella) were grown in controlled conditions under three different irradiances of visible light with or without UV-B (280–320nm) radiation. The biologically effective UV-B radiation (UV-BBE) was 6.17 kJ m −2 d −1 , and simulated a c. 5% decrease in stratospheric ozone at 55.7°N, 13.4°E. The photon flux densities of the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR, 400–700 nm) were either 700 μmol m −2−1 (HL), 500, μmol m −2 s −1 (ML) or 230 μmol m −2 s −1 PAR (LL). Under high light (HL) conditions plus UV-B radiation, bean plants appeared most resistant to the enhanced levels of UV-B radiation, and responded only by increasing leaf thickness by c. 18%. A small increase in UV screening pigments was also observed. Both the lower irradiances (ML and LL) increased the sensitivity of the plants to UV-B radiation. Changes in leaf structure were also observed. Photosystem II was inhibited under ML and LL together with UV-B radiation, as determined by Chi fluorescence induction and calculation of the fluorescence half-rise times. Leaf reflectivity measurements showed that the amount of PAR able to penetrate leaves of UV-B treated plants was reduced, and that a possible correlation may exist between the reduced PAR levels, loss of Chi and lowered photosynthetic activity, especially for LL +UV-B grown plants, where surface reflection from leaves was highest. Changes in leaf chlorophyll content were mostly confined to plants grown under LL + UV-B, where a decrease of c. 20% was found. With regard to protective pigments (the carotenoids and UV screening pigments) plants subjected to different visible light conditions responded differently. Among the growth parameters measured, there was a substantial decrease in leaf area, particularly under LL + UV-B (c. 47% relative to controls), where leaf dry weight was also reduced by c. 25%. (author)

Vitamin D in asthma and future perspectives

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Huang H

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Haidong Huang,1 Konstantinos Porpodis,2 Paul Zarogoulidis,2,3 Kalliopi Domvri,2 Paschalina Giouleka,2 Antonis Papaiwannou,2 Stella Primikyri,2 Efi Mylonaki,2 Dionysis Spyratos,2 Wolfgang Hohenforst-Schmidt,4 Ioannis Kioumis,2 Konstantinos Zarogoulidis2 1Department of Respiratory Diseases, Changhai Hospital/First Affiliated Hospital of the Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Pulmonary Department, “G Papanikolaou” General Hospital, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece; 3Department of Interventional Pneumology, Ruhrlandklinik, West German Lung Center, University Hospital, University Duisburg–Essen, Essen, Germany; 4II Medical Clinic, “Coburg” Hospital, University of Würzburg, Coburg, Germany Abstract: Humans have the ability to synthesize vitamin D during the action of ultraviolet (UV radiation upon the skin. Apart from the regulation of calcium and phosphate metabolism, another critical role for vitamin D in immunity and respiratory health has been revealed, since vitamin D receptors have also been found in other body cells. The term “vitamin D insufficiency” has been used to describe low levels of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D that may be associated with a wide range of pulmonary diseases, including viral and bacterial respiratory infection, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cancer. This review focuses on the controversial relationship between vitamin D and asthma. Also, it has been found that different gene polymorphisms of the vitamin D receptor have variable associations with asthma. Other studies investigated the vitamin D receptor signaling pathway in vitro or in experimental animal models and showed either a beneficial or a negative effect of vitamin D in asthma. Furthermore, a range of epidemiological studies has also suggested that vitamin D insufficiency is associated with low lung function. In the future, clinical trials in different asthmatic

Single cell analysis facilitates staging of Blimp1-dependent primordial germ cells derived from mouse embryonic stem cells.

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John J Vincent

Full Text Available The cell intrinsic programming that regulates mammalian primordial germ cell (PGC development in the pre-gonadal stage is challenging to investigate. To overcome this we created a transgene-free method for generating PGCs in vitro (iPGCs from mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs. Using labeling for SSEA1 and cKit, two cell surface molecules used previously to isolate presumptive iPGCs, we show that not all SSEA1+/cKit+ double positive cells exhibit a PGC identity. Instead, we determined that selecting for cKit(bright cells within the SSEA1+ fraction significantly enriches for the putative iPGC population. Single cell analysis comparing SSEA1+/cKit(bright iPGCs to ESCs and embryonic PGCs demonstrates that 97% of single iPGCs co-express PGC signature genes Blimp1, Stella, Dnd1, Prdm14 and Dazl at similar levels to e9.5-10.5 PGCs, whereas 90% of single mouse ESC do not co-express PGC signature genes. For the 10% of ESCs that co-express PGC signature genes, the levels are significantly lower than iPGCs. Microarray analysis shows that iPGCs are transcriptionally distinct from ESCs and repress gene ontology groups associated with mesoderm and heart development. At the level of chromatin, iPGCs contain 5-methyl cytosine bases in their DNA at imprinted and non-imprinted loci, and are enriched in histone H3 lysine 27 trimethylation, yet do not have detectable levels of Mvh protein, consistent with a Blimp1-positive pre-gonadal PGC identity. In order to determine whether iPGC formation is dependent upon Blimp1, we generated Blimp1 null ESCs and found that loss of Blimp1 significantly depletes SSEA1/cKit(bright iPGCs. Taken together, the generation of Blimp1-positive iPGCs from ESCs constitutes a robust model for examining cell-intrinsic regulation of PGCs during the Blimp1-positive stage of development.

Combination therapy with lercanidipine and enalapril in the management of the hypertensive patient: an update of the evidence

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Antza C

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Christina Antza,1 Stella Stabouli,2 Vasilios Kotsis1 1Hypertension Center, Third Department of Medicine, Papageorgiou Hospital, 2First Department of Pediatrics, Hippokration Hospital, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece Abstract: Hypertension is an important risk factor for premature death as it increases the probability of stroke, myocardial infarction, and heart failure. Antihypertensive drugs can decrease cardiovascular (CV morbidity and mortality. The majority of hypertensive patients need more than one antihypertensive agent to attain blood pressure (BP targets. Monotherapy can effectively reduce BP only in 20%–40% of patients. Multiple mechanisms including increased peripheral vascular resistance, increased cardiac work, and hypervolemia are involved in the pathogenesis of hypertension. Targeting multiple pathways may more potently reduce BP. Increasing the dose of a single agent in many cases does not provide the expected BP-lowering effect because the underlying mechanism of the BP increase is either different or already corrected with the lower dose. Moreover, drugs acting on different pathways may have synergistic effects and thus better control hypertension. It is well known that diuretics enhance the actions of renin–angiotensin aldosterone system and activate it as a feedback to the reduced circulated blood volume. The addition of a renin–angiotensin aldosterone system blocker to a diuretic may more effectively reduce BP because the system is upregulated. Reducing the maximal dose of an agent may also reduce possible side effects if they are dose dependent. The increased prevalence of peripheral edema with higher doses of calcium channel blockers (CCBs is reduced when renin–angiotensin aldosterone system blockers are added to CCBs through vein dilation. The effectiveness of the combination of enalapril with lercanidipine in reducing BP, the safety profile, and the use of the combination of angiotensin

Modelo de simulación para determinar niveles de contaminación del Río Mantaro

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Iván Castillo Ponce

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Objetivos: Determinar si la contaminación del río Mantaro tiene alguna influencia sobre la viabilidad del programa “Sierra Exportadora”; luego de la construcción del modelo, se conducirá experimentos sobre el modelo con el fin de reducir la incertidumbre acerca de la influencia de la contaminación del río Mantaro sobre la viabilidad del programa “Sierra Exportadora” y evaluar los posibles resultados. Métodos: Construir un modelo de simulación donde se utilizará este sistema, el cual será útil para extrapolar los resultados posibles, dicha solución obtenida enmarcará los hitos más importantes que intervienen en el proceso; éstos elementos básicos del proceso están unidos entre sí, mediante flechas que indican las influencias que se establecen entre ellos; además el diagrama da a conocer que el proceso posee una estructura con un bucle de realimentación negativa, la influencia constituye una descripción del proceso que se está estudiando. Después de haber realizado una simulación 50 veces del modelo con los distintos valores de entrada tales como la contaminación, la influencia de la población, la viabilidad de la oca y alcachofa, estos datos se almacenaron en las tablas generadas por el programa STELLA y luego estos datos fueron exportados a Excel para su análisis. Resultados: La construcción de este modelo de simulación reduce únicamente la incertidumbre provocada por uno de varios factores, la contaminación del río Mantaro sobre la viabilidad del Programa Sierra Exportadora. Conclusiones: La información generada por la investigación puede ser aplicada en otros sistemas que tengan características similares. Lo que propone precisamente es aportar e integrar todos los aspectos en un modelo general de simulación para el análisis de la viabilidad del Programa Sierra Exportadora.

Modelación matemática del consumo de presas y el flujo de energía asociado a la reproducción de Rostrhamus sociabilis (Aves, Falconiformes

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Denis, D.

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Mathematical model of prey consumption and energy flow associated with breeding in Rostrhamus sociabilis (Aves, Falconiformes The snail kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis is a bird of prey that has permanent populations and is fairly common in Cuba. It is classified as High Concern in the North American Water Bird Conservation Plan, partially due to a highly specialized diet, preying only on water snail of the genus i>Pomacea. In the current paper we developed a mathematical model in Stella software to analyze consumption and mobilization of energy during reproduction of this species. The model was calibrated with reproductive parameters determined in a nesting colony of the Great Wetland of North Ciego de Ávila, Cuba. Variables included in the basic model were adults, eggs and nestling morphometry, behavioral aspects, trophic elements and other reproductive parameters; some were measured in the field and the rest were taken from literature sources. The main outcomes of the model were: energy consumption per individual, daily and total season consumption, and the number of prey it represented. To test the model we simulated the behaviour of a 100–nest colony that resulted in the production of an average of 158 ± 7.1 eggs and between 106 and 125 nestlings. Daily adult energy consumption was estimated between 110.32 and 118.47 kcal, which can be achieved by consuming around 28 snails each day. A colony of this size has an estimated requirement of 1,893,103 kcal of total energy per season, driven by 5,933 ± 59 kg of snail biomass, equivalent to between 419 and 552 thousand snails in three and half months. Sensitivity analysis of the model showed that the variables that most influenced energy consumption were those related to reproductive success, adult body size and flying behavior. The resulting model will allow to simulate and assess the potential impact of future habitat modifications on the species breeding.

Effects of gamma irradiation on the karyotype of plutella xylostella l., and the histology of the testis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noran, A.M.; Nadia, M.T.K.

2002-01-01

The aim of this study is to produce semi-sterile Palatal xylo stella males that can compete with the wild males for the normal females, with the resulting progeny being sterile. Semi-sterile males were produced by exposing male pupae 24 hours before emergence to gamma (Co 60 ) irradiation at a dose of 175 Gy. The chromosome study was done through squashes of the testes with aceto-orsin staining from fourth in star larvae of the irradiated male parent, the F I males resulting from crosses between irradiated parents, from crosses between irradiated males and normal females and vice versa. For the histological study, the irradiated males were crossed with normal females to get the F Is and the resulting progeny then used to subsequently get the F2, F and F4 generations, respectively. Back crosses to the normal males or females for each of these generations were also carried out. Samples of the testes of resulting males from every cross were removed and subjected to the usual processing for preparation of glass slides using haematoxlin and eosin staining. Exposure to 175 Gy was found to be sufficient to cause chromosomal aberrations like short- and long chain formations or a combination of both as well as ring formations in the treated groups. The least number of translocations obtained were from crosses of Fl males (from normal male x irradiated female) with normal females while the highest from F Is resulting from crosses between both irradiated parents. Cytological changes observed in the testes of the Fl generation included emergence of vacuoles in place of germ cells, displacement of spermatocytes from the periphery to the center of the testes and disintegration of spermatocytes and spermatozoal bundles. However, the damages were not permanent as recovery were detected in testes from subsequent generations. It is likely that the effects of gamma irradiation on the karyotype and histology of the testis of the males are determined by the female parent as recovery

Quality of life and personality traits in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma and their first-degree caregivers

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Granieri A

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Antonella Granieri,1 Stella Tamburello,2 Antonino Tamburello,2 Silvia Casale,3 Chiara Cont,1 Fanny Guglielmucci,1 Marco Innamorati21Università degli Studi di Torino, Turin, Italy; 2Università Europea di Roma, Rome, Italy; 3Università di Firenze, Firenze, ItalyAbstract: Asbestos exposure causes significant pleural diseases, including malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM. Taking into account the impact of MPM on emotional functioning and wellbeing, this study aimed to evaluate the quality of life and personality traits in patients with MPM and their first-degree caregivers through the World Health Organization Quality of Life–BREF (WHOQOL-BREF and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF. The sample was composed of 27 MPM patients, 55 first-degree relatives enrolled in Casale Monferrato and Monfalcone (Italy, and 40 healthy controls (HC. Patients and relatives reported poorer physical health than the HC. Patients had a higher overall sense of physical debilitation and poorer health than relatives and the HC, more numerous complaints of memory problems and difficulties in concentrating, and a greater belief that goals cannot be reached or problems solved, while often claiming that they were more indecisive and inefficacious than the HC. First-degree relatives reported lower opinions of others, a greater belief that goals cannot be reached or problems solved, support for the notion that they are indecisive and inefficacious, and were more likely to suffer from fear that significantly inhibited normal activities than were HC. In multinomial regression analyses, partial models indicated that sex, physical comorbidities, and the True Response Inconsistency (TRIN-r, Malaise (MLS, and Behavior-Restricting Fears (BRF dimensions of the MMPI-2-RF had significant effects on group differences. In conclusion, health care providers should assess the ongoing adjustment and emotional wellbeing of people with MPM and their

Costs and benefits of trap-neuter-release and euthanasia for removal of urban cats in Oahu, Hawaii.

Science.gov (United States)

Lohr, Cheryl A; Cox, Linda J; Lepczyk, Christopher A

2013-02-01

Our goal was to determine whether it is more cost-effective to control feral cat abundance with trap-neuter-release programs or trap and euthanize programs. Using STELLA 7, systems modeling software, we modeled changes over 30 years in abundance of cats in a feral colony in response to each management method and the costs and benefits associated with each method . We included costs associated with providing food, veterinary care, and microchips to the colony cats and the cost of euthanasia, wages, and trapping equipment in the model. Due to a lack of data on predation rates and disease transmission by feral cats the only benefits incorporated into the analyses were reduced predation on Wedge-tailed Shearwaters (Puffinus pacificus). When no additional domestic cats were abandoned by owners and the trap and euthanize program removed 30,000 cats in the first year, the colony was extirpated in at least 75% of model simulations within the second year. It took 30 years for trap-neuter-release to extirpate the colony. When the cat population was supplemented with 10% of the initial population size per year, the colony returned to carrying capacity within 6 years and the trap and euthanize program had to be repeated, whereas trap-neuter-release never reduced the number of cats to near zero within the 30-year time frame of the model. The abandonment of domestic cats reduced the cost effectiveness of both trap-neuter-release and trap and euthanize. Trap-neuter-release was approximately twice as expensive to implement as a trap and euthanize program. Results of sensitivity analyses suggested trap-neuter-release programs that employ volunteers are still less cost-effective than trap and euthanize programs that employ paid professionals and that trap-neuter-release was only effective when the total number of colony cats in an area was below 1000. Reducing the rate of abandonment of domestic cats appears to be a more effective solution for reducing the abundance of feral cats. �

Modelling nitrogen transformation and removal in mara river basin wetlands upstream of lake Victoria

Science.gov (United States)

Mayo, Aloyce W.; Muraza, Marwa; Norbert, Joel

2018-06-01

Lake Victoria, the largest lake in Africa, is a resource of social-economic potential in East Africa. This lake receives water from numerous tributaries including Mara River, which contributes about 4.8% of the total Lake water inflow. Unfortunately, Mara River basin faces environmental problems because of intensive settlement, agriculture, overgrazing in the basin and mining activities, which has lead to water pollution in the river, soil erosion and degradation, decreased soil fertility, loss of vegetation cover, decreased water infiltration capacity and increased sedimentation. One of the pollutants carried by the river includes nitrogen, which has contributed to ecological degradation of the Lake Victoria. Therefore this research work was intended to determine the effectiveness of Mara River wetland for removal of nitrogen and to establish nitrogen removal mechanisms in the wetland. To predict nitrogen removal in the wetland, the dynamics of nitrogen transformation was studied using a conceptual numerical model that takes into account of various processes in the system using STELLA II version 9.0®2006 software. Samples of model input from water, plants and sediments were taken for 45 days and were analyzed for pH, temperature, and DO in situ and chemical parameters such as NH3-N, Org-N, NO2-N, and NO3-N were analyzed in the laboratory in accordance with Standard methods. For plants, the density, dominance, biomass productivity and TN were determined and for sediments TN was analyzed. Inflow into the wetland was determined using stage-discharge relationship and was found to be 734,400 m3/day and the average wetland volume was 1,113,500 m3. Data collected by this study were used for model calibration of nitrogen transformation in this wetland while data from another wetland were used for model validation. It was found that about 37.8% of total nitrogen was removed by the wetland system largely through sedimentation (26.6%), plant uptake (6.6%) and

Very small embryonic-like stem cells (VSELs) detected in azoospermic testicular biopsies of adult survivors of childhood cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Kurkure, Purna; Prasad, Maya; Dhamankar, Vandana; Bakshi, Ganesh

2015-11-09

Infertility is a known side-effect of oncotherapy in cancer survivors, and often compromises the quality of life. The present study was undertaken to detect very small embryonic-like stem cells (VSELs) in testicular biopsies from young adult survivors of childhood cancer who had azoospermia. VSELs have been earlier reported in human and mouse testes. They resist busulphan treatment in mice and potentially restore spermatogenesis when the somatic niche is restored by transplanting Sertoli or mesenchymal cells. VSELs also have the potential to differentiate into sperm in vitro. The study had clearance from Institutional review board (IRB). Seven azoospermic survivors of childhood cancer were included in the study after obtaining their informed consent. Semen analysis was done to confirm azoospermia prior to inclusion in the study. Testicular biopsies were performed at the Uro-oncology Unit of the hospital and then used for various studies to detect VSELs. Hematoxylin and Eosin stained tubular sections confirmed azoospermia and smears revealed the presence of very small, spherical VSELs with high nucleo-cytoplasmic ratio, in addition to the Sertoli cells. Immuno-localization studies on testicular smears showed that the VSELs were CD133+/CD45-/LIN-, expressed nuclear OCT-4, STELLA and cell surface SSEA-4. Pluripotent transcripts Oct-4A, Nanog and Sox-2 were detected in azoospermic samples whereas marked reduction was observed in germ cell markers Oct-4 and Boule. The present study demonstrates the presence of pluripotent VSELs in the testicular biopsy of azoospermic adult survivors of childhood cancer. It is likely that these persisting VSELs can restore spermatogenesis as demonstrated in mice studies. Therefore, pilot studies need to be undertaken using autologous mesenchymal cells with a hope to restore testicular function and fertility in cancer survivors. The results of this study assume a great significance in the current era, where cryopreservation of testicular

Mu süda on mägedes : [luuletused] / Robert Burns ; tlk. Ralf Parve, Ants Oras, Urmas Tõnisson, Kullo Vende, Mart Mäger, Georg Eduard Luiga, Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald, Karl August Hermann, Johannes Vau, Lydia Koidula, Ado Grenzstein

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Burns, Robert, 1759-1796

2006-01-01

Sisu: Mu süda on mägedes ; Hing mägises Shotis ; Mu isa oli farmer ; Künnipoiss ; Noor neiu vanal mehel ; Vana Rob Morris ; Meg veskilt ; Veski-Meg ; Willie pruulis õlut ; John Odratera ; Hägisele ; Shotlased, nüüd seiske kindlad! ; Invernessi neid ; Kuradi tants aktsiisiametnikuga ; Macphersoni hüvastijätt / tlk. Ralf Parve ; Macphersoni hüvastijätt / / tlk. Ants Oras ; Nii ja naa ; Hiirele ; Eleegia Peg Nicholsoni surma puhul ; Vaga Willie palve ; Epitaaf vagale Willièle ; Värsid poeet Fergussoni portree alla ; Lõikuskuu laul ; On kaldal kõrkjad reas ; Mu arm on nagu ruske roos ; Mu arm... ; Oo, mu arm on verev, verev roos ; Esimene suudlus lahkudes ; Mõte karmist saatusest ; Oh näeksin tühja nõmme peal ; Kui näeksin ; "Kui üksi olles näeksid, neid..." ; Käies pikas rohus ; Värsiread ; Mind naine tihti taob ; Rõõmus lesk ; Willie Wastleì naine ; Mul on naine ; John Anderson / tlk. Urmas Tõnisson ; Jaan Anderson / tlk. Karl August Hermann ; Sügiselaul ; Kündja ja lill ; Kodu ; Ometi ; Kõige kiuste ; Kui õis, mis õitseb heinamaal ; Põlev armastus ; Hans ja Krõõt : [luuletused]. Epigramme: Raamatukoi ; Impromptu ; Puudus. Ammustele aegadele : [luuletus]. Autori kohta eluloolisi andmeid lk. 179

Replacing sedentary time with physical activity: a 15-year follow-up of mortality in a national cohort

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Dohrn IM

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Ing-Mari Dohrn,1 Lydia Kwak,2 Pekka Oja,3 Michael Sjöström,4 Maria Hagströmer1,5 1Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society (NVS, 2Institute of Environmental Medicine (IMM, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; 3UKK Institute, Tampere, Finland; 4Department of Biosciences and Nutrition (BioNut, Karolinska Institutet, 5Functional Area Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden Background: Sedentary behavior is associated with health risks in adults. The potential benefits of reducing sedentary time may be dependent not only on decrease per se, but also on the type of activity it replaces. Few longitudinal studies have investigated the effects on mortality when replacing objectively assessed sedentary time with another physical activity (PA behavior. Objective: To investigate the effects of replacing objectively assessed sedentary time with time in light-intensity PA or moderate-vigorous PA (MVPA on all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease (CVD mortality or cancer mortality in a cohort with 15 years follow-up time.Methods: In total, 851 women and men from the population-based Sweden Attitude Behaviour and Change study were included. Time spent sedentary, in light-intensity PA and in MVPA were assessed using an Actigraph 7164 accelerometer. Mortality data were obtained from Swedish registers. Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazard ratios (HR of mortality with 95% confidence intervals (CI and isotemporal substitution models were used to estimate the effect of replacing sedentary behavior with PA for the same amount of time.Results: Over a follow-up of 14.2 years (SD 1.9 with 12,117 person-years at risk, 79 deaths occurred, 24 deaths from CVD, 27 from cancer, and 28 from other causes. Replacing 30 minutes/day of sedentary time with light-intensity PA was associated with significant reduction in all-cause mortality risk (HR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.81-0.98 and CVD mortality risk (HR

Book Reviews

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Redactie KITLV

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Frederick H. Smith; Caribbean Rum: A Social and Economic History (Franklin W. Knight Stephan Palmié; Wizards and Scientists: Explorations in Afro-Cuban Modernity and Tradition (Julie Skurski Miguel A. De la Torre; The Quest for the Cuban Christ: A Historical Search (Fernando Picó L. Antonio Curet, Shannon Lee Dawdy & Gabino La Rosa Corzo (eds.; Dialogues in Cuban Archaeology (David M. Pendergast Jill Lane; Blackface Cuba, 1840-1895 (Arthur Knight Hal Klepak; Cuba’s Military 1990-2005: Revolutionary Soldiers during Counter-Revolutionary Times (Antoni Kapcia Lydia Chávez (ed.; Capitalism, God, and a Good Cigar: Cuba Enters the Twenty-First Century (Ann Marie Stock Diane Accaria-Zavala & Rodolfo Popelnik (eds.; Prospero’s Isles: The Presence of the Caribbean in the American Imaginary (Sean X. Goudie Alexandra Isfahani-Hammond (ed.; The Masters and the Slaves: Plantation Relations and Mestizaje in American Imaginaries (Danielle D. Smith David J. Weber; Bárbaros: Spaniards and Their Savages in the Age of Enlightenment (Neil L. Whitehead Larry Gragg; Englishmen Transplanted: The English Colonization of Barbados, 1627-1660 (Richard S. Dunn Jon F. Sensbach; Rebecca’s Revival: Creating Black Christianity in the Atlantic World (Aaron Spencer Fogleman Jennifer L. Morgan; Laboring Women: Reproduction and Gender in New World Slavery (Verene A. Shepherd Jorge Luis Chinea; Race and Labor in the Hispanic Caribbean: The West Indian Immigrant Worker Experience in Nineteenth-Century Puerto Rico, 1800-1850 (Juan José Baldrich Constance R. Sutton (ed.; Revisiting Caribbean Labour: Essays in Honour of O. Nigel Bolland (Mary Chamberlain Gert Oostindie; Paradise Overseas: The Dutch Caribbean: Colonialism and its Transatlantic Legacies (Bridget Brereton Allan Pred; The Past Is Not Dead: Facts, Fictions, and Enduring Racial Stereotypes (Karen Fog Olwig James C. Riley; Poverty and Life Expectancy: The Jamaica

mHealth medication and blood pressure self-management program in Hispanic hypertensives: a proof of concept trial

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Sieverdes JC

2013-10-01

Full Text Available John C Sieverdes,1 Mathew Gregoski,1 Sachin Patel,1 Deborah Williamson,1 Brenda Brunner-Jackson,1 Judith Rundbaken,1 Eveline Treiber,1 Lydia Davidson,1 Frank A Treiber1,21Technology Applications Center for Healthful Lifestyles, College of Nursing, 2College of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USAAbstract: Patient nonadherence to medication regimens and provider therapeutic inertia (failure to respond in timely manner to clinical data are two primary contributors to ineffective chronic disease management. This 3-month proof of concept trial used an iterative design approach guided by self-determination theory and the technology acceptance model to develop a culturally sensitive, patient-centered, and provider-centered mobile health medication and blood pressure self-management program. Cellular connected electronic medication trays provided reminder signals for patients to take medications and smartphone messaging reminded patients to take at-home blood pressures using a Bluetooth-enabled monitor. Providers were given bimonthly feedback. Motivational and reinforcement text and audio messages were sent based upon medication adherence rates and blood pressure levels. Ten Hispanics with uncontrolled essential hypertension were randomized to standard care and Smartphone Medication Adherence Stops Hypertension (SMASH intervention groups. Primary outcomes of provider and patient acceptability of the program were found to be high. Retention rates for the 3-month program were 100%, with mean ± standard deviation overall medication adherence for the SMASH group at 97.2% ± 2.8%, with all strongly believing the program helped them remember to take their medication. SMASH participants measured their blood pressure every 3 days 83.2% ± 6.0% of the time and completed 89.2% ± 19.06% of the expected readings. Nonparametric tests showed statistical significance for resting blood pressure changes between groups at months 2 (P = 0

Prospective unmasked randomized evaluation of the iStent inject® versus two ocular hypotensive agents in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma

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Fea AM

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Antonio M Fea,1 Jose I Belda,2 Marek Rękas,3 Anselm Jünemann,4 Lydia Chang,5 Luis Pablo,6 Lilit Voskanyan,7 L Jay Katz81Università degli Studi di Torino, Clinica Oculistica, Torino, Italy; 2Hospital Torrevieja Salud, UTE, Servicio de Oftalmologia, Alicante, Spain; 3Military Institute of Medicine, Department of Ophthalmology, Warsaw, Poland; 4Universitätsaugenklinik, Erlangen, Germany; 5Hinchingbrooke Hospital NHS Trust and Moorfields Bedford Hospital NHS Trust, United Kingdom; 6Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet, Servicio Oftalmologico, Zaragoza, Spain; 7SV Malayan Ophthalmological Center, Yerevan, Armenia; 8Wills Eye Institute, Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, PA, USAPurpose: The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes of subjects with open-angle glaucoma (OAG not controlled on one medication who underwent either implantation of two iStent inject® trabecular micro-bypass devices or received medical therapy consisting of a fixed combination of latanoprost/timolol.Patients and methods: Of 192 subjects who qualified for the study and were enrolled, 94 were randomized to surgery with implantation of two iStent inject® devices in the treated eye and 98 to receive medical therapy.Results: At the month 12 visit, 94.7% of eyes (89/94 in the stent group reported an unmedicated intraocular pressure (IOP reduction of ≥20% versus baseline unmedicated IOP, and 91.8% of eyes (88/98 in the medical therapy group reported an IOP reduction ≥20% versus baseline unmedicated IOP. A 17.5% between-group treatment difference in favor of the iStent inject group was statistically significant (P=0.02 at the ≥50% level of IOP reduction. An IOP ≤18 mmHg was reported in 92.6% of eyes (87/94 in the iStent inject group and 89.8% of eyes (88/98 in the medical therapy group. Mean (standard deviation IOP decreases from screening of 8.1 (2.6 mmHg and 7.3 (2.2 mmHg were reported in the iStent inject and medical therapy groups, respectively. A high

MODELACIÓN DEL ESTADO TRÓFICO DEL HUMEDAL DE JABOQUE, BOGOTÁ D.C., COLOMBIA

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Julio Eduardo Beltrán Vargas

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Se construyó un modelo de simulación dinámica con la intención de explicar el comportamiento del fósforo total en el agua y su relación con el estado trófico del humedal de Jaboque, Bogotá D. C., Colombia. En el modelo se incluyen los flujos de entrada y salida del agua y los aportes de fósforo total en cada una de las tres secciones de la cubeta con características morfométricas y condiciones físicas y químicas del agua muy diferentes. La modelación dinámica se basó en ecuaciones diferenciales y para ella se utilizó el programa computacional Stella 9.1® . En los meses con mayores caudales (época de lluvias, la carga de fósforo disminuye en las tres secciones del humedal, mientras que en los meses con menores caudales (época de sequía, la misma se incrementa. En la sección uno (tercio alto el valor del índice de estado trófico fue de 45,09 mg/m3  y el tiempo de retención hidráulica de 14 días/año. En la segunda sección (tercio medio el valor del mencionado índice fue de 35,89 mg/m3  y el THR fue de 34 días/año. Finalmente, en la tercera sección (tercio bajo los valores fueron 19,5 mg/m3  y 40 días/año respectivamente. Estos valores indican que la primera y segunda sección se encuentran en condiciones de eutrofía y la tercera de mesotrofía. El análisis de sensibilidad permitió estimar que con una carga de 0,62 mg/m3  de fósforo total se podrían mantener las condiciones de mesotrofía en la tercera sección y que para las dos primeras secciones se debería reducir la carga hasta 0,2 mg/m3, para alcanzar un estado de mesotrofía.

Training the next generation of scientists: Modeling Infectious Disease and Water Quality of Montana Streams

Science.gov (United States)

Fytilis, N.; Wyman, S.; Lamb, R.; Stevens, L.; Kerans, B.; Rizzo, D. M.

2010-12-01

water quality and the presence of these taxa is important in determining stream health. In addition, system dynamics software (STELLA) is used to model the non-linear relationships and feedback between worm prevalence and disease dynamics. These types of collaborations between engineers, biologists, field ecologists and geneticists from secondary, post-secondary and higher institutions proved useful in linking complex geochemical data, worm community structure and molecular genetics to develop the next-generation scientists and better understand disease dynamics.

Short-term evolution and coexistence of spots, plages and flare activity on LQ Hydrae

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Flores Soriano, M.; Strassmeier, K. G.

2017-01-01

Aims: We aim to study the short-term evolution of the chromospheric and photospheric activity of the young, single K2 dwarf LQ Hya. Methods: Four months of quasi-simultaneous spectroscopic and photometric observations were used to study the variations of the photometric light curve, the evolution of the chromospheric activity from the Hα and Hβ lines, and the distribution of cool spots from Doppler maps. Results: During our observations one side of the star was more active than the other. The equivalent width of the Hα line from the least active hemisphere increased from ≈0.7 Å at the beginning of the observation to 1.0 Å at the end. The basal emission of the most active hemisphere remained roughly constant at EWHαt1.0 Å. Intense flare activity was observed during the first twenty days, where at least four different events were detected. The line asymmetries of the Hα line suggest that one of the flares could have produced a mass ejection with a maximum projected speed of 70kms-1. The rotational modulation of the V-band photometry showed clear anti-correlation with the chromospheric activity. The difference in brightness between the opposite hemispheres decreased from 0.m16 to 0.m09 in two months. Three spots gradually moving apart from each other are dominating the photospheric Doppler maps. The comparison between the maps and the Hα line as the star rotates reveals the spatial coexistence of chromospheric Hα emission and photospheric spots. Conclusions: Our results indicate that the active regions of LQ Hya can live for at least four months. The detected changes in the photometric light curve and the spectroscopic Doppler images seem to be more a consequence of the spatial redistribution of the active regions rather than due to changes in their strength. Only one of the active regions shows significant changes in its chromospheric emission. Based on data obtained with the STELLA robotic telescope in Tenerife, an AIP facility jointly operated by AIP

Book Reviews

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Gerard Termorshuizen

1999-01-01

Full Text Available - Adriaan Bedner, Joachim Sterly, Simbu plant-lore; Plants used by the people in the Central Highlands of New Guinea; Volume 1: The people and their plant-lore; Volume 2: Botanical survey of Simbu plants; Volume 3: Ethnographical key. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer Verlag, 1997, 23 9 + 323 + 275 pp. - H.J.M. Claessen, Jan Rensel, Home in the islands; Housing and social change in the Pacific. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 1997, vii + 264 pp., Margaret Rodman (eds. - Peter van Eeuwijk, Norbert Kohnen, Traditionelle Medizin auf den Philippinen; Angstbewältigung und kognition bei Krankheiten. Stuttgart: Steiner, 1992, 396 pp. [Beiträge zur Südasienforschung 154.] - C.D. Grijns, William A. Smalley, Linguistic diversity and national unity; Language ecology in Thailand. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994, xv + 436 pp. - Nico Kaptein, Ulrike Freitag, Hadhrami traders, scholars, and statesmen in the Indian Ocean, 1750s-1960s. Leiden: Brill, 1997, x + 392 pp., William G. Clarence-Smith (eds. - Elsbeth Locher-Scholten, Raden Ajeng Kartini, On feminism and nationalism; Kartini’s letters to Stella Zeehandelar 1899-1903, translated and with an introduction by Joost Coté. Clayton, Victoria: Monash Asia Instiute, Monash University, xxiii + 129 pp. - Alison Murray, L. Manderson, Sites of desire, economies of pleasure: Sexualities in Asia and the Pacific. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997, xii + 367 pp., M. Jolly (eds. - Chris Penders, Harry A. Poeze, Politiek-Politioneele Overzichten van Nederlandsch-Indië, Deel IV, 1935-1941. Leiden: KITLV Uitgeverij, 1994, xciv + 485 pp. - Kathryn Robinson, Henk Schulte Nordholt, The spell of power; A history of Balinese politics 1650-1940. Leiden: The KITLV Press, 1996, ix + 389 pp. [VKI 170.] - Eric Tagliacozzo, Carl A. Trocki, Gangsters, democracy, and the state in Southeast Asia. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Southeast Asia Program, 1998, 94 pp. [Cornell University Southeast Asia Program

The spectroscopic orbit of Capella revisited

Science.gov (United States)

Weber, M.; Strassmeier, K. G.

2011-07-01

Context. Capella is among the few binary stars with two evolved giant components. The hotter component is a chromospherically active star within the Hertzsprung gap, while the cooler star is possibly helium-core burning. Aims: The known inclination of the orbital plane from astrometry in combination with precise radial velocities will allow very accurate masses to be determined for the individual Capella stars. This will constrain their evolutionary stage and possibly the role of the active star's magnetic field on the dynamical evolution of the binary system. Methods: We obtained a total of 438 high-resolution échelle spectra during the years 2007-2010 and used the measured velocities to recompute the orbital elements. Our double-lined orbital solution yields average residuals of 64 m s-1 for the cool component and 297 m s-1 for the more rapidly rotating hotter component. Results: The semi-amplitude of the cool component is smaller by 0.045 km s-1 than the orbit determination of Torres et al. from data taken during 1996-1999 but more precise by a factor of 5.5, while for the hotter component it is larger by 0.580 km s-1 and more precise by a factor of 3.6. This corresponds to masses of 2.573 ± 0.009 M⊙ and 2.488 ± 0.008 M⊙ for the cool and hot component, respectively. Their relative errors of 0.34% and 0.30% are about half of the values given in Torres et al. for a combined literature-data solution but with absolute values different by 4% and 2% for the two components, respectively. The mass ratio of the system is therefore q = MA/MB = 0.9673 ± 0.0020. Conclusions: Our orbit is the most precise and also likely to be the most accurate ever obtained for Capella. Based on data obtained with the STELLA robotic telescope in Tenerife, an AIP facility jointly operated by AIP and IAC.Full Table 1 is only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/531/A89

Hydrothermal synthesis of layered iron-chalcogenide superconductors and related compounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pachmayr, Ursula Elisabeth

2017-01-01

This thesis provides a new preparative approach to iron-chalcogenide based superconductors. The hydrothermal synthesis of anti-PbO type FeSe, which can be seen as basis structure of the compounds of interest was successfully developed. Along with this, some insights regarding the influence of synthesis parameters were gained featuring a basis for further hydrothermal syntheses of new iron-chalcogenide compounds. The potential of this method, primarily the extension of the so far limited accessibility of iron-chalcogenide based superconductors by solid-state sythesis, was revealed within the present work. The solid-solution FeSe_1_-_xS_x was prepared for the whole substitution range, whereas solid-state synthesis exhibits a solubility limit at x = 0.3. Furthermore, the new compounds [(Li_0_._8Fe_0_._2)OH]FeX (X = Se, S) were synthesized which are exclusively accessible via hydrothermal method. The compounds, where layers of (Li_0_._8Fe_0_._2)OH alternate with FeX layers, feature exceptional physical properties, notably a coexistence of superconductivity and ferromagnetism. They were intensively studied within this work. By combination of solid-state and hydrothermal ion-exchange synthesis even large crystals necessary for subsequent physical measurements are accessible. Apart from these layered iron-chalcogenide superconductors, further compounds which likewise exhibit building blocks of edge-sharing FeSe_4 tetrahedra were found via this synthesis method. The iron selenides A_2Fe_4Se_6 (A = K, Rb, Cs) consist of double chains of [Fe_2Se_3]"1"-, whereas a new compound Na_6(H_2O)_1_8Fe_4Se_8 exhibits [Fe_4Se_8]"6"- 'stella quadrangula' clusters. This structural diversity as well as the associated physical properties of the compounds demonstrates the numerous capabilities of hydrothermal synthesis in the field of iron-chalcogenide compounds. In particular with regard to iron-chalcogenide based superconductors this synthesis strategy is encouraging. It seems probable

Diagnostic yield of the comprehensive assessment of developmental delay/mental retardation in an institute of child neuropsychiatry.

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Battaglia, A; Bianchini, E; Carey, J C

1999-01-01

The Consensus Conference of the American College of Medical Genetics has established guidelines regarding the evaluation of patients with mental retardation (MR) [Curry et al., Am. J. Med. Genet. 72:468-477, 1997]. They emphasized the high diagnostic utility of cytogenetic studies and of neuroimaging in certain clinical settings. However, data on the diagnostic yield of these studies in well-characterized populations of individuals with MR are scant. Majnemer and Shevell [J. Pediatr. 127:193-199, 1995] attained a diagnostic yield of 63%. However, this study included only 60 patients and the classification included pathogenetic and causal groups. The Stella Maris Institute has evaluated systematically patients with developmental delay (DD)/MR and performed various laboratory studies and neuroimaging in almost all patients. We report a retrospective analysis of the diagnostic yield of 120 consecutive patients observed at our Institute during the first 6 months of 1996. There were 77 males and 43 females; 47 were mildly delayed (IQ 70-50), 31 were moderately delayed (IQ 50-35), and 42 were severely delayed (IQ 35-20). Diagnostic studies (history, physical examination, standard cytogenetics, fragile X testing, molecular studies, electroencephalography, electromyography, nerve conduction studies, neuroimaging, and metabolic screening tests) yielded a causal diagnosis in 50 (41.6%) and a pathogenetic diagnosis in 47 (39.2%) of the 120 patients. Causal categories included chromosomal abnormalities (14), Fra(X) syndromes (4), known MCA/MR syndromes (19), fetal environmental syndromes (1), neurometabolic (3) disorders, neurocutaneous (3) disorders, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (3), other encephalopathies (1), and congenital bilateral perisylvian syndrome (2). Pathogenetic categories included idiopathic MCA/MR syndromes (35), epileptic syndromes (10), and isolated lissencephaly sequence (2). Diagnostic yield did not differ across categories and degree of DD. Our results

Hydrothermal synthesis of layered iron-chalcogenide superconductors and related compounds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pachmayr, Ursula Elisabeth

2017-04-06

This thesis provides a new preparative approach to iron-chalcogenide based superconductors. The hydrothermal synthesis of anti-PbO type FeSe, which can be seen as basis structure of the compounds of interest was successfully developed. Along with this, some insights regarding the influence of synthesis parameters were gained featuring a basis for further hydrothermal syntheses of new iron-chalcogenide compounds. The potential of this method, primarily the extension of the so far limited accessibility of iron-chalcogenide based superconductors by solid-state sythesis, was revealed within the present work. The solid-solution FeSe{sub 1-x}S{sub x} was prepared for the whole substitution range, whereas solid-state synthesis exhibits a solubility limit at x = 0.3. Furthermore, the new compounds [(Li{sub 0.8}Fe{sub 0.2})OH]FeX (X = Se, S) were synthesized which are exclusively accessible via hydrothermal method. The compounds, where layers of (Li{sub 0.8}Fe{sub 0.2})OH alternate with FeX layers, feature exceptional physical properties, notably a coexistence of superconductivity and ferromagnetism. They were intensively studied within this work. By combination of solid-state and hydrothermal ion-exchange synthesis even large crystals necessary for subsequent physical measurements are accessible. Apart from these layered iron-chalcogenide superconductors, further compounds which likewise exhibit building blocks of edge-sharing FeSe{sub 4} tetrahedra were found via this synthesis method. The iron selenides A{sub 2}Fe{sub 4}Se{sub 6} (A = K, Rb, Cs) consist of double chains of [Fe{sub 2}Se{sub 3}]{sup 1-}, whereas a new compound Na{sub 6}(H{sub 2}O){sub 18}Fe{sub 4}Se{sub 8} exhibits [Fe{sub 4}Se{sub 8}]{sup 6-} 'stella quadrangula' clusters. This structural diversity as well as the associated physical properties of the compounds demonstrates the numerous capabilities of hydrothermal synthesis in the field of iron-chalcogenide compounds. In particular with regard

Frequency of frailty and its association with cognitive status and survival in older Chileans

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Albala C

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Cecilia Albala,1 Lydia Lera,1 Hugo Sanchez,1 Barbara Angel,1 Carlos Márquez,1 Patricia Arroyo,2 Patricio Fuentes2 1Public Health Nutrition Unit, Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology (INTA, University of Chile, 2Faculty of Medicine, Clinical Hospital, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile Background: Age-associated brain physiologic decline and reduced mobility are key elements of increased age-associated vulnerability.Objective: To study the frequency of frailty phenotype and its association with mental health and survival in older Chileans.Methods: Follow-up of ALEXANDROS cohorts designed to study disability associated with obesity in community-dwelling people 60 years and older living in Santiago, Chile. At baseline, 2,098 (67% women of 2,372 participants were identified as having the frailty phenotype: weak handgrip dynamometry, unintentional weight loss, fatigue/exhaustion, five chair-stands/slow walking speed and difficulty walking (low physical activity. After 10–15 years, 1,298 people were evaluated and 373 had died. Information regarding deaths was available for the whole sample.Results: The prevalence of frailty at baseline (≥3 criteria in the whole sample was 13.9% (women 16.4%; men 8.7% and the pre-frailty prevalence (1–2 criteria was 63.8% (65.0% vs 61.4%, respectively. Frailty was associated with cognitive impairment (frail 48.1%; pre-frail 21.7%; nonfrail 20.5%, P<0.001 and depression (frail 55.1%; pre-frail 27.3%; nonfrail 18.8%, P<0.001. Logistic regression models for frailty adjusted for sex and age showed a strong association between frailty and mild cognitive impairment (MCI (odds ratio [OR] =3.93; 95% CI: 1.41–10.92. Furthermore, an important association was found for depression and frailty (OR =2.36; 95% CI 1.82–3.06. Age- and sex-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs for death showed an increased risk with increasing frailty: pre-frail HR =1.56 (95% CI: 1.07–2.29, frail HR =1.91 (95% CI: 1.15–3.19; after

MODELACIÓN HIDROLÓGICA DEL HUMEDAL DE JABOQUE – BOGOTÁ, D.C. (COLOMBIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beltrán Julio

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Se propone un modelo de simulación dinámico para explicar los procesos hidrológicosdel humedal Jaboque – Bogotá D.C., Colombia, en tres secciones con característicasfísicas y químicas particulares. El modelo incluye los caudales de entrada y salidade agua para cada una de las secciones del humedal. La modelación dinámica sebasó en ecuaciones diferenciales. Se utilizó el método Euler de integración con elprograma computacional Stella 9.1®. El comportamiento hidrológico del humedaltiene una alta dependencia de los aportes de la cuenca aferente que a su vez obedecenfundamentalmente a las condiciones climáticas de la cuenca. En el año 1992 (añoNiño la precipitación fue 432.7 mm/año con una descarga de agua estimada de lacuenca aferente de 905 225 m3/año, siendo el valor más bajo en los últimos 39 años.En el 2010 (año Niña la precipitación anual fue de 1251.3. mm, con una descargade la cuenca aferente de 2 471 634 m3/año, que corresponde al dato más alto para elmismo periodo. La comparación entre los caudales de entrada y salida del humedalJaboque muestran una diferencia bruta de 82 165 m3/mes para un total anual de 985980 m3/año. El tiempo hidráulico de retención modelado (THR se estimó en quincepara la primera sección, 36 y 42 días para la segunda y tercera sección. El promedioen el humedal fue de 93 días/año. El análisis de sensibilidad mostró que entre loslimites de 800 mm/año y 900 mm/año, valores entre los cuales oscila el promediomultianual de la precipitación, el comportamiento del THR es de 13 a 15 días/año enla primera sección, en la segunda de 32 a 36 días/año y la tercera de 38 a 43 días. Secorrobora así la relación que existe entre la precipitación y los factores morfométricosdel humedal.

Transmission spectroscopy of the hot Jupiter TrES-3 b: Disproof of an overly large Rayleigh-like feature

Science.gov (United States)

Mackebrandt, F.; Mallonn, M.; Ohlert, J. M.; Granzer, T.; Lalitha, S.; García Muñoz, A.; Gibson, N. P.; Lee, J. W.; Sozzetti, A.; Turner, J. D.; Vaňko, M.; Strassmeier, K. G.

2017-12-01

Context. Transit events of extrasolar planets offer the opportunity to study the composition of their atmospheres. Previous work on transmission spectroscopy of the close-in gas giant (TrES)-3 b revealed an increase in absorption towards blue wavelengths of very large amplitude in terms of atmospheric pressure scale heights, too large to be explained by Rayleigh-scattering in the planetary atmosphere. Aims: We present a follow-up study of the optical transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter TrES-3 b to investigate the strong increase in opacity towards short wavelengths found by a previous study. Furthermore, we aim to estimate the effect of stellar spots on the transmission spectrum. Methods: This work uses previously published long slit spectroscopy transit data of the Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) and published broad band observations as well as new observations in different bands from the near-UV to the near-IR, for a homogeneous transit light curve analysis. Additionally, a long-term photometric monitoring of the TrES-3 host star was performed. Results: Our newly analysed GTC spectroscopic transit observations show a slope of much lower amplitude than previous studies. We conclude from our results the previously reported increasing signal towards short wavelengths is not intrinsic to the TrES-3 system. Furthermore, the broad band spectrum favours a flat spectrum. Long-term photometric monitoring rules out a significant modification of the transmission spectrum by unocculted star spots. Based on (1) data obtained with the STELLA robotic telescopes in Tenerife, an AIP facility jointly operated by AIP and IAC, (2) observations collected at the German-Spanish Astronomical Center, Calar Alto, jointly operated by the Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie Heidelberg and the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (CSIC) and (3) observations made with the Italian Telescopio Nazionale Galileo (TNG) operated on the island of La Palma by the Fundación Galileo Galilei of

Can melatonin prevent or improve metabolic side effects during antipsychotic treatments?

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Porfirio MC

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Maria-Cristina Porfirio,1 Juliana Paula Gomes de Almeida,2 Maddalena Stornelli,1 Silvia Giovinazzo,1 Diane Purper-Ouakil,3 Gabriele Masi4 1Unit of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, “Tor Vergata” University of Rome, Italy; 2Unit of Child Neurology, Irmandade Santa Casa de Misericordia Hospital São Paulo, Brazil; 3Unit of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Saint Eloi Hospital, Montpellier, France; 4IRCCS Stella Maris, Scientific Institute of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, Calambrone, Pisa, Italy Abstract: In the last two decades, second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs were more frequently used than typical antipsychotics for treating both psychotic and nonpsychotic psychiatric disorders in both children and adolescents, because of their lower risk of adverse neurological effects, that is, extrapyramidal symptoms. Recent studies have pointed out their effect on weight gain and increased visceral adiposity as they induce metabolic syndrome. Patients receiving SGAs often need to be treated with other substances to counteract metabolic side effects. In this paper, we point out the possible protective effect of add-on melatonin treatment in preventing, mitigating, or even reversing SGAs metabolic effects, improving quality of life and providing safer long-term treatments in pediatric patients. Melatonin is an endogenous indolamine secreted during darkness by the pineal gland; it plays a key role in regulating the circadian rhythm, generated by the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN of the hypothalamus, and has many other biological functions, including chronobiotic, antioxidant and neuroprotective properties, anti-inflammatory and free radical scavenging effects, and diminishing oxidative injury and fat distribution. It has been hypothesized that SGAs cause adverse metabolic effects that may be restored by nightly administration of melatonin because of its influence on autonomic and hormonal outputs. Interestingly, atypical anti-psychotics (AAPs can cause

Outcome predictors in autism spectrum disorders preschoolers undergoing treatment as usual: insights from an observational study using artificial neural networks

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Narzisi A

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Antonio Narzisi,1 Filippo Muratori,1,2 Massimo Buscema,3,4 Sara Calderoni,1 Enzo Grossi3,5 1Department of Developmental Neuroscience, IRCCS Stella Maris Foundation, 2Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; 3Semeion Research Centre of Sciences of Communication, Rome, Italy; 4Department of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, USA; 5Autism Research Unit, Villa Santa Maria Institute, Tavernerio, Italy Background: Treatment as usual (TAU for autism spectrum disorders (ASDs includes eclectic treatments usually available in the community and school inclusion with an individual support teacher. Artificial neural networks (ANNs have never been used to study the effects of treatment in ASDs. The Auto Contractive Map (Auto-CM is a kind of ANN able to discover trends and associations among variables creating a semantic connectivity map. The matrix of connections, visualized through a minimum spanning tree filter, takes into account nonlinear associations among variables and captures connection schemes among clusters. Our aim is to use Auto-CM to recognize variables to discriminate between responders versus no responders at TAU.Methods: A total of 56 preschoolers with ASDs were recruited at different sites in Italy. They were evaluated at T0 and after 6 months of treatment (T1. The children were referred to community providers for usual treatments. Results: At T1, the severity of autism measured through the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule decreased in 62% of involved children (Response, whereas it was the same or worse in 37% of the children (No Response. The application of the Semeion ANNs overcomes the 85% of global accuracy (Sine Net almost reaching 90%. Consequently, some of the tested algorithms were able to find a good correlation between some variables and TAU outcome. The semantic connectivity map obtained with the application of the Auto-CM system showed

THE ROLE OF HUMAN DIGNITY IN THE ASSESSMENT OF FAIR COMPENSATION FOR UNFAIR DISMISSALS

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Stella Vettori

2012-11-01

can award. If there has been unfair discrimination, the courts may even award punitive and non-pecuniary damages. * Stella Vettori. BA LLB (Wits LLM (UNISA LLD (UP. Professor, School of Business Leadership, University of South Africa (vettom@unisa.ac.za. This article is based on a presentation delivered on 3 August 2011 at the 8th International Commercial Law Workshop, held at Nedbank Head Office, Sandton.

The Performance test of Mechanical Sodium Pump with Water Environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Chungho; Kim, Jong-Man; Ko, Yung Joo; Jeong, Ji-Young; Kim, Jong-Bum; Ko, Bock Seong; Park, Sang Jun; Lee, Yoon Sang

2015-01-01

test, four quadrant pump characteristic curve test, cavitation test, coast-down flow test, pressure pulsation test, flow resistance test, and etc. were already carried out using a model pump in the water environment by pump vender's experimental facility in 2011. In 2015, to compare the hydraulic characteristic of model pump with water and sodium, the performance test of model pump were performed using vender's experimental facility and STELLA-1

Temporal variability of live (stained benthic foraminiferal faunas in a river-dominated shelf – Faunal response to rapid changes of the river influence (Rhône prodelta, NW Mediterranean

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E. Legrand

2012-04-01

Full Text Available In the context of the French research project CHACCRA (Climate and Human-induced Alterations in Carbon Cycling at the River-seA connection, living (rose Bengal-stained benthic foraminifera were investigated at two stations (24 and 67 m depth in the Rhône prodelta (NW Mediterranean, Gulf of Lions. The aim of this study was to precise the response of benthic foraminiferal faunas to temporal changes of the Rhône River inputs (e.g. organic and terrigeneous material. Each site was sampled in April 2007, September 2007, May 2008 and December 2008, permitting to observe foraminiferal faunas of the 63–150 and >150 μm size fractions under a wide range of environmental conditions. Obvious variations in foraminiferal faunal composition were observed during the four investigated periods at the shallowest Station A located in the close vicinity of the Rhône River mouth. After major Rhône River flood events, different colonisation stages were observed with foraminiferal faunas responding with an opportunistic strategy few days to weeks after the creation of a peculiar sedimentary environment (Leptohalysis scottii, May 2008 or high organic matter supplies (Ammonia tepida, December 2008. Under more stable conditions, relatively diverse and equilibrated faunas grew in the sediments. Species benefited from noticeable input of riverine phytodetritus to the sediment during spring bloom conditions (April 2007; e.g. Bolivina dilatata, Nonionella stella, Stainforthia fusiformis, or high amounts of still bio-available organic matter under more oligotrophic conditions (September 2007; e.g. Ammonia tepida, Psammosphaera fusca. The reduced influence of the Rhône River input at the farther Station N led to less contrasted environmental conditions during the four sampling periods, and so to less obvious variations in foraminiferal faunal composition. During reduced riverine influence (i.e. low Rhône discharge, species able to feed on fresh phytodetritus (e

Bookreviews

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Redactie KITLV

2009-07-01

Revolution, by Ana Serra (reviewed by Jorge Duany Lydia Cabrera and the Construction of an Afro-Cuban Cultural Identity, by Edna M. Rodríguez-Mangual (reviewed by Brian Brazeal Worldview, the Orichas, and Santeria: Africa to Cuba and Beyond, by Mercedes Cros Sandoval (reviewed by Elizabeth Pérez The 1812 Aponte Rebellion in Cuba and the Struggle against Atlantic Slavery, by Matt D. Childs (reviewed by Manuel Barcia Caliban and the Yankees: Trinidad and the United States Occupation, by Harvey R. Neptune (reviewed by Selwyn Ryan Claims to Memory: Beyond Slavery and Emancipation in the French Caribbean, by Catherine A. Reinhardt (reviewed by Dominique Taffin The Grand Slave Emporium, Cape Coast Castle and the British Slave Trade, by William St. Clair (reviewed by Ray A. Kea History of the Caribbean, by Frank Moya Pons (reviewed by Olwyn M. Blouet Out of the Crowded Vagueness: A History of the Islands of St Kitts, Nevis & Anguilla, by Brian Dyde (reviewed by Karen Fog Olwig Scoping the Amazon: Image, Icon, Ethnography, by Stephen Nugent (reviewed by Neil L. Whitehead

Pregnant Women's Perceptions of the Risks and Benefits of Disclosure During Web-Based Mental Health E-Screening Versus Paper-Based Screening: Randomized Controlled Trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Kingston, Dawn; Biringer, Anne; Veldhuyzen van Zanten, Sander; Giallo, Rebecca; McDonald, Sarah; MacQueen, Glenda; Vermeyden, Lydia; Austin, Marie-Paule

2017-10-20

vulnerable during mental health screening. We found that women of low income, those treated previously for depression or anxiety, and those pregnant with their first child were more likely to perceive greater risk. However, these associations were very small. Pregnant women in both the e-screening and paper-based screening groups perceived benefit and risk of disclosure similarly, suggesting that providers can implement the mode of screening that is most ideal for their clinical setting. Regardless of the mode of screening, a substantial number of women reported feeling vulnerable during mental health screening, highlighting the importance of the need to reduce women's vulnerability throughout the screening process with strategies such as addressing women's concerns, explaining the rationale for screening, and discussing how results will be used. Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01899534; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01899534 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6tRKtGC4M). ©Dawn Kingston, Anne Biringer, Sander Veldhuyzen van Zanten, Rebecca Giallo, Sarah McDonald, Glenda MacQueen, Lydia Vermeyden, Marie-Paule Austin. Originally published in JMIR Mental Health (http://mental.jmir.org), 20.10.2017.

GJ 1214: Rotation period, starspots, and uncertainty on the optical slope of the transmission spectrum

Science.gov (United States)

Mallonn, M.; Herrero, E.; Juvan, I. G.; Essen, C. von; Rosich, A.; Ribas, I.; Granzer, T.; Alexoudi, X.; Strassmeier, K. G.

2018-06-01

to build the transmission spectrum. This degeneracy can only be broken by high-precision transit photometry resolving the spot crossing signature in the transit light curve. Based on data obtained with the STELLA robotic telescopes in Tenerife, an AIP facility jointly operated by AIP and IAC.The photometry tables are only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (http://130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/614/A35

Book Reviews

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Redactie KITLV

2008-12-01

Full Text Available I Wayan Arka, Malcolm Ross (eds; The many faces of Austronesian voice systems; Some new empirical studies (René van den Berg H.W. Dick; Surabaya, city of work; A socioeconomic history, 1900-2000 (Peter Boomgaard Josiane Cauquelin; The aborigines of Taiwan: the Puyuma; From headhunting to the modern world. (Wen-Teh Chen Mark Turner, Owen Podger (with Maria Sumardjono and Wayan K. Tirthayasa; Decentralisation in Indonesia; Redesigning the state (Dorian Fougères Jérôme Samuel; Modernisation lexicale et politique terminologique; Le cas de l’Indonésien (Arndt Graf Nicholas J. White; British business in post-colonial Malaysia, 1957-70: neo-colonialism or disengagement? (Karl Hack Chin Peng; Alias Chin Peng; My side of history; As told to Ian Ward and Norma Miraflor (Russell Jones C.C. Chin, Karl Hack (eds; Dialogues with Chin Peng; New light on the Malayan Emergency (Russell Jones Saw Swee-Hock; Population policies and programmes in Singapore (Santo Koesoebjono Domenyk Eades; A grammar of Gayo; A language of Aceh, Sumatra (Yuri A. Lander Derek Johnson, Mark Valencia (eds; Piracy in Southeast Asia; Status, issues, and responses (Carolyn Liss Niclas Burenhult; A grammar of Jahai (James A. Matisoff Ann R. Kinney, Marijke J. Klokke, Lydia Kieven (photographs by Rio Helmi; Worshiping Siva and Buddha; The temple art of East Java (Dick van der Meij Ruben Stoel; Focus in Manado Malay; Grammar, particles, and intonation (Don van Minde Pamela J. Stewart, Andrew Strathern (eds; Expressive genres and historical change; Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Taiwan. (Dianne van Oosterhout Johszua Robert Mansoben; Sistem politik tradisional di Irian Jaya, Indonesia; Studi perbandingan (Anton Ploeg Timothy B. Barnard (ed.; Contesting Malayness; Malay identities across boundaries (Nathan Porath Joel Bradshaw, Francisc Czobor (eds; Otto Dempwolff’s grammar of the Jabêm language in New Guinea (Ger Reesink

Development of a zoning-based environmental-ecological-coupled model for lakes to assess lake restoration effect

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Mengjia; Zou, Changxin; Zhao, Yanwei

2017-04-01

Environmental/ecological models are widely used for lake management as they provide a means to understand physical, chemical and biological processes in highly complex ecosystems. Most research focused on the development of environmental (water quality) and ecological models, separately. Limited studies were developed to couple the two models, and in these limited coupled models, a lake was regarded as a whole for analysis (i.e., considering the lake to be one well-mixed box), which was appropriate for small-scale lakes and was not sufficient to capture spatial variations within middle-scale or large-scale lakes. This paper seeks to establish a zoning-based environmental-ecological-coupled model for a lake. The Baiyangdian Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Northern China, was adopted as the study case. The coupled lake models including a hydrodynamics and water quality model established by MIKE21 and a compartmental ecological model used STELLA software have been established for middle-sized Baiyangdian Lake to realize the simulation of spatial variations of ecological conditions. On the basis of the flow field distribution results generated by MIKE21 hydrodynamics model, four water area zones were used as an example for compartmental ecological model calibration and validation. The results revealed that the developed coupled lake models can reasonably reflected the changes of the key state variables although there remain some state variables that are not well represented by the model due to the low quality of field monitoring data. Monitoring sites in a compartment may not be representative of the water quality and ecological conditions in the entire compartment even though that is the intention of compartment-based model design. There was only one ecological observation from a single monitoring site for some periods. This single-measurement issue may cause large discrepancies particularly when sampled site is not representative of the whole compartment. The

Use of System Thinking Software for Determining Climate Change Impacts in Water Balance for the Rio Yaqui Basin, Sonora, Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Tapia, E. M.; Minjarez, J. I.; Espinoza, I. G.; Sosa, C. M.

2013-05-01

the most important basins in Sonora. It is located in northwestern Mexico, and covers an approximate area of 74,054 km2, providing water for one of the most prominent agricultural zones in the state. We used the System Thinking Software "Stella 9.0.2" to dynamically visualize the effects of climate change on the Rio Yaqui Basin. In this software, the main components of the water balance are simulated over the designated period of time with tools that include stocks and flow diagrams, causal loops, model equations and built in functions. Climate change projections for the Rio Yaqui Basin showed highly variable runoff behaviors, indicating the possibility of frequent droughts alternating with years of extraordinary runoff. Simulations generated through the System Thinking Software provides a reasonable basis for establishing policies for optimizing storage of water during extraordinary runoff periods that can serve as water supplies during frequent droughts.

The 8th International Conference on Highly Frustrated Magnetism (HFM 2016)

Science.gov (United States)

Gardner, J. S.; Kao, Y. J.

2017-04-01

decided at the conference that the next HFM conference will be held in two years, in 2018, on the campus of UC Davis, followed one in Shanghai around December 2019. Finally, on behalf of the HFM 2016 Organizing Committee, I wish to deeply thank all the people who generously helped us in organizing and running the HFM 2016 conference. These include the numerous funding sources, Committee Members, Program and Session chairs, Chia-Chi Liu, Chao-Jung Kuo, Hanz Peng, Laura Bravo and Stella Su and of course all the participants, without you it would have simply been another wet week in Taipei. One might remember HFM2016 for the power outage, but we hope you remember the taste, sounds and views of Taipei as well as stimulation conversations and hopefully the beginnings of productive partnerships.

Historia de la Endocrinología en Colombia

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Alfredo Jácome Roca

2001-08-01

Full Text Available

La especialidad clínica de la endocrinología lleva ya más de medio siglo en nuestro país, y si nos ponemos a ver la actividad de algunos precursores, esta historia bien puede remontarse al siglo XIX.

El académico Antonio Ucrós Cuellar se puso en la tarea de recopilar las actuaciones de los especialistas en problemas hormonales y en las actividades de las asociaciones científicas de este ramo de la medicina y para ello contó con la ayuda editorial de los endocrinólogos y discípulos suyos, Eric Hernández y Stella Acosta.

Ucrós ha participado personalmente en el devenir histórico de la endocrinología en Colombia, como investigador de la problemática del bocio, como fundador de la Asociación Colombiana de Endocrinología y de la sección de endocrinología del Hospital de San José, que recientemente cumplió sus Bodas de Oro, y en la cual se han formado numerosos y distinguidos especialistas que ejercen en el país su profesión.

Comentar esta obra viene como anillo al dedo en este número especial sobre endocrinología que publica la revista “Medicina” de la Academia. Este libro de 230 páginas recoge en su parte inicial los antecedentes históricos y los estudios sobre el bocio en el país que el autor tan elegantemente lideró, finaliza esta parte inicial con su propia versión de la endocrinología en Colombia, que comienza con él y otros eminentes especialistas como Hernán Mendoza Hoyos, Tomás Quintero, Alonso Gutiérrez, Jaime Cortázar, Efraím tero, Mario Sánchez Medina (en el campo de la diabetes, Iván Molina en Medellín, Alberto Jamis en Barranquilla, y el importante grupo de Cali donde figuraron entre otros Eduardo Gaitán, Heins Wahner (actualmente en la Clínica Mayo, William Jubiz y Matilde de Bernal, todos de talla internacional.

Mi interés por la endocrinología se inició con las magistrales clases de Mendoza Hoyos en la Javeriana, sobre el tema de la Fisiología Endocrina

Mineral Soil Carbon in Managed Hardwood Forests of the Northeastern US

Science.gov (United States)

Vario, C.; Friedland, A.; Hornig, C.

2013-12-01

New England is characterized by extensive forest cover and large reservoirs of soil carbon (C). In northern hardwood forests, mineral soil C can account for up to 50% of total ecosystem C. There has been an increasing demand for forests to serve both as a C sink and a renewable energy source, and effective management of the ecosystem C balance relies on accurate modeling of each compartment of the ecosystem. However, the dynamics of soil C storage with respect to forest use are variable and poorly understood, particularly in mineral soils. For example, current regional models assume C pools after forest harvesting do not change, while some studies suggest that belowground mineral soil C pools can be affected by disturbances at the soil surface. We quantified mineral soil C pools in previously clear-cut stands in seven research or protected forests across New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Vermont. The ages of the sites sampled ranged from recently cleared to those with no disturbance history, with 21 forest stands represented in the study. Within each research forest studied, physical parameters such as soil type, forest type, slope and land-use history (aside from forest harvest) did not vary between the stands of different ages. Soil samples were collected to a depth of 60 cm below the mineral-organic boundary using a gas-powered augur and 9.5-cm diameter drill bit. Samples were collected in 10-cm increments in shallow mineral soil and 15-cm increments from 30-60 cm depth. Carbon, nitrogen (N), pH, texture and soil mineralogy were measured across the regional sites. At Bartlett Experimental Forest (BEF) in New Hampshire, mineral soil biogeochemistry in cut and uncut sites was studied at a finer scale. Measurements included soil temperature to 55 cm depth, carbon compound analyses using Py-GCMS and soil microbial messenger RNA extractions from mineral soil. Finally, we simulated C dynamics after harvesting by building a model in Stella, with a particular

Integrating scientific argumentation to improve undergraduate writing and learning in a global environmental change course

Science.gov (United States)

Kreutz, K. J.; Koffman, B. G.; Trenbath, K. L.

2013-12-01

What makes a good scientific argument? We began ERS201: Global Environmental Change by asking students to reflect on the mechanics of a strong scientific argument. At the same time, we asked them to evaluate global CO2 and sea level data from different time periods in Earth's history to answer the question, 'Is there a relationship between atmospheric CO2 and sea level, and if so, why?' This question formed the theme for the course, a mid-level, inquiry-based class of about 20 students. Each week, students target specific aspects of the climate system through problem sets, which include experimental and laboratory work, basic statistical analyses of paleoclimate datasets, and the development of simple systems models using STELLA software. Every 2-4 weeks, we challenge students to write short (1500 word) data-driven scientific arguments, which require a synthesis of information from their problem sets and from the scientific literature. Students have to develop a clear, testable hypothesis related to each writing prompt, and then make their case using figures they have generated during the weekly problem sets. We evaluate student writing using a rubric that focuses on the structure and clarity of the argument, relevance of the data included, and integration and quality of the graphics, with a lesser emphasis placed on voice and style. In 2013, student scores improved from a median value of 86 × 9% to 94 × 8% over the course of the semester. More importantly, we found that incorporation of scientific argumentation served to increase student understanding of important and sometimes abstract scientific concepts. For example, on pre- and post-course assessments we asked the question, 'What would happen if a significant portion of the sea ice floating in the Arctic Ocean were to melt?' On the pre-assessment, 80% of students said that it would lead to more coastal flooding, while only 20% correctly stated that a decrease in the reflection of solar energy would lead to

Age and speleogenesis of epigenic gypsum caves in the northern Apennines (Italy)

Science.gov (United States)

Columbu, Andrea; Chiarini, Veronica; De Waele, Jo; Drysdale, Russell; Forti, Paolo; Hellstrom, John; Woodhead, Jon

2016-04-01

Triassic and Messinian gypsum beds host the majority of the caves in the eastern flank of the northern Apennines. To date, more than six hundreds voids have been mapped, including the longest known epigenic gypsum cave system in the world (Spipola-Acquafredda, ~11 km of tunnels) (De Waele et al., 2013). Superimposed caves are typically sub-horizontal (Klimchouk, 2000) and connected through vertical shafts, reflecting the palaeo base-level variations. When preserved, river terraces at the surface lie at the same palaeo altitude of the base level and horizontal cave passages. Notwithstanding the well-known geology of the area known (Vai and Martini, 2001), the age of these caves has been greatly underestimated in the past. Considering the rapid dissolution of the gypsum and uplifting of the area, the start of speleogenesis activity was considered to have occurred during the last glacial age. The age of karst voids can be only indirectly estimated by the dating of the infilling sediments. U-Th dating on carbonate speleothems provides high-precision and accurate ages (Hellstrom, 2003; Scholz and Hoffmann, 2008). We thus applied this methodology to 20 speleothems coming from 14 different caves belonging to the Monte Tondo, Spipola Acquafredda, Castelnuovo, Stella-Rio Basino and Brisighella systems. The results show that: i) caves were forming since at least ~300 ka; ii) the peak of speleogenesis was reached during relatively cold climate stages, when rivers formed terraces at the surface and aggradation caused paragenesis in the stable cave levels (Columbu et al., 2015). Besides the significant contribution to the understanding of the Apennines evaporite karst evolution, this study (and its further advancement) may also refine knowledge of the local vs regional uplifting rates and base-level variations since the late Pleistocene (Wegmann and Pazzaglia, 2009). References Columbu, A., De Waele, J., Forti, P., Montagna, P., Picotti, V., Pons-Branchu, E., Hellstrom, J

Gypsum karst in Italy: a review

Science.gov (United States)

De Waele, Jo; Chiarini, Veronica; Columbu, Andrea; D'Angeli, Ilenia M.; Madonia, Giuliana; Parise, Mario; Piccini, Leonardo; Vattano, Marco; Vigna, Bartolomeo; Zini, Luca; Forti, Paolo

2016-04-01

. Forti P., Lucci P. (Eds.) (2010) - Il Progetto Stella-Basino. Studio multidisciplinare di un sistema carsico nella Vena del Gesso Romagnola. Memorie Ist. It. Spel. II(14), 260 p. Lucci P., Piastra S. (Eds.) (2015), I Gessi di Brisighella e Rontana: studio multidisciplinare di un'area carsica nella Vena del Gesso Romagnola. Memorie Ist. It. Spel. II(28), 751 p. Madonia G., Forti P. (2003) - Le aree carsiche gessose d'Italia. Memorie Ist. It. Spel. II(14), 285 p. Madonia G., Vattano M. (2011) - New knowledge on the Monte Conca gypsum karst system (central-western Sicily, Italy). Acta Carsologica, 40, (1), pp. 53-64. Marinelli O. (1917) - Fenomeni carsici nelle regioni gessose d'Italia. Mem. Geografiche di Giotto Dainelli, 34, pp. 263-416, suppl. to Riv. Geografica It Tedeschi L. et al. (2015) - Comportamento idrogeologico di alcune risorgenti carsiche nei gessi dell'Emilia-Romagna. Memorie Ist. It. Spel. II(29), pp. 399-404. Vigna B. et al. (2010) - Evolution of karst in Messinian gypsum (Monferrato, Northern Italy). Geodinamica Acta, 23(1-3), pp. 29-40. Zini L. et al. (2015) - a multidisciplinary approach in sinkhole analysis: the Quinis village case study (NE-Italy). Engineering Geology, 197, pp.132-144.

A laminar flow unit for the care of critically ill newborn infants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Perez JM

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Jose MR Perez,1 Sergio G Golombek,2 Carlos Fajardo,3 Augusto Sola41Stella Maris Hospital, International Neurodevelopment Neonatal Center (CINN, Sao Paulo, Brazil; 2M Fareri Children’s Hospital, Westchester Medical Center, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY, USA; 3University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; 4St Jude Hospital, Fullerton, California, CA, USAIntroduction: Medical and nursing care of newborns is predicated on the delicate control and balance of several vital parameters. Closed incubators and open radiant warmers are the most widely used devices for the care of neonates in intensive care; however, several well-known limitations of these devises have not been resolved. The use of laminar flow is widely used in many fields of medicine, and may have applications in neonatal care.Objective: To describe the neonatal laminar flow unit, a new equipment we designed for care of ill newborns.Methods: The idea, design, and development of this device was completed in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The unit is an open mobile bed designed with the objective of maintaining the advantages of the incubator and radiant warmer, while overcoming some of their inherent shortcomings; these shortcomings include noise, magnetic fields and acrylic barriers in incubators, and lack of isolation and water loss through skin in radiant warmers. The unit has a pump that aspirates environmental air which is warmed by electrical resistance and decontaminated with High Efficiency Particulate Air Filter (HEPA filters (laminar flow. The flow is directed by an air flow directioner. The unit has an embedded humidifier to increase humidity in the infant’s microenvironment and a servo control mechanism for regulation of skin temperature.Results: The laminar flow unit is open and facilitates access of care providers and family, which is not the case in incubators. It provides warming by convection at an air velocity of 0.45 m/s, much faster than an incubator (0.1 m/s. The system

Constraining fault activity by investigating tectonically-deformed Quaternary palaeoshorelines using a synchronous correlation method: the Capo D'Orlando Fault as a case study (NE Sicily, Italy)

Science.gov (United States)

Meschis, Marco; Roberts, Gerald P.; Robertson, Jennifer

2016-04-01

each palaeoshoreline from the initial work by Giunta et al., (2011) using synchronous correlation. This alternative approach suggests that uplift rates were constant through the Late Quaternary, suggesting that the fault slip-rate governing seismic hazard has also been constant. Reference Armijo, R., Meyer, B. G. C. P., King, G. C. P., Rigo, A., & Papanastassiou, D. (1996). Quaternary evolution of the Corinth Rift and its implications for the Late Cenozoic evolution of the Aegean. Geophysical Journal International, 126(1): 11 - 53. Basili R., Valensise, G., Vannoli, P., Burrato, P., Fracassi, U., Mariano, S., Tiberti, M.M., Boschi. E. (2008). The Database of Individual Seismogenic Sources (DISS), version 3: summarizing 20 years of research on Italy's earthquake geology, Tectonophysics, doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2007.04.014. Giunta, G., Gueli, A.M., Monaco, C., Orioli, S., Ristuccia, G.M., Stella, G., Troja, S.O. (2011). Middle-Late Pleistocene marine terraces and fault activity in the Sant'Agata di Militello coastal area (north-eastern Sicily). Journal of Geodynamics. 55, 32 - 40. Roberts, G. P., Meschis, M., Houghton, S., Underwood, C., & Briant, R. M. (2013). The implications of revised Quaternary palaeoshoreline chronologies for the rates of active extension and uplift in the upper plate of subduction zones.Quaternary Science Reviews, 78: 169 - 187.

Isamaalaulud ja okupatsioonirežiim – nostalgia, utoopia ja reaalsus. Estonian Patriotic Songs and the Occupational Regime – Nostalgia, Utopia and Reality

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Kanni Labi

2012-04-01

certain aspects that help shed light on what followed can be pointed out. Through the events that took place during the national awakening, emphasis was placed on Russia’s role in the formation and development of the Estonian people, where cultural figures devoted to the people – such as Lydia Koidula - and their work were supported; patriotic songs were at the core of their activities. Formally, the patriotic repertoire was close to the characteristics of the only permitted art style in the Soviet Union – socialist realism : both are folksy, traditional, typical, historicist, pathetic and optimistic. At the same time it can be assumed that when the ruling power didn’t allow or tolerate even the most miniscule of deviances from the official line in no sphere of life, they had to make this official line concede in certain superficial manners to the real customs and endeavours of the people, in order to guarantee its own authority. So the patriotic repertoire remained, but the official treatment of its nostalgia and utopia was different than that of the people. The Soviet authorities’ strategy to achieve their aims – to level out and assimilate peoples and cultures – shaped the Estonian national identity and culture in a crucial manner: the patriotic songs were preserved because they were a permitted phenomenon through which the ideas forbidden in other areas could be expressed, and resistance to the ideological pressure helped preserve the Estonian people’s cultural memory. It can thus be claimed that the patriotic tinge which to this day can be sensed in the Estonian singing tradition is a result of Estonia’s political history.

FOREWORD: 3rd Symposium on Large TPCs for Low Energy Event Detection

Science.gov (United States)

Irastorza, Igor G.; Colas, Paul; Gorodetzky, Phillippe

2007-05-01

organization of the Symposium was made possible by the contribution of the members of the organizating Committee and International Advisory Committee. I want to thank in particular the session chairmen, G. Wormser, S. Katsanevas, J. Timmermans, S. Andriamonje, G. Chardin, T. Ebisuzaki, J.-E. Augustin and E. Delagnes for their contribution to the smooth running of the workshop. The symposium was free of fees and was made possible thanks to the financial support from DAPNIA-CEA and IN2P3-CNRS, the two major French research organizations that are gratefully acknowledged. Finally I want to thank the speakers for the high quality of their talks and all participants for coming to Paris and actively contributing in the meeting. The symposium was dedicated to the memory of Mike Ronan who left us a few months before. Mike was organizing in Berkeley a similar series of TPC workshops. David Nygren reviewed Mike Ronan's contribution to physics and especially to the development of new TPCs. Ioannis Giomataris Chair of the Organizing Committee International Advisory Committee Bouchez J. jacques.bouchez@cea.frNygren D-R. DRNygren@lbl.gov Charpak G. charpak@emse.frPaschos E. paschos@physik.uni-dortmund.de Collar J. collar@uchicago.eduShipsey I. shipsey@physics.purdue.edu Garwin R. RSA@watson.ibm.comSinclair D. D.sinclair@physics.carleton.ca Iliopoulos J. ilio@lpt.ens.frSpiro M. mspiro@admin.in2p3.fr Katsanevas S. katsan@admin.in2p3.frSpooner N. n.spooner@sheffield.ac.uk Mansoulié B. bruno.mansoulie@cea.frVergados J-D. vergados@cc.uoi.gr Morales J. jmorales@unizar.esVignaud D. vignaud@cdf.in2p3.fr Local Organizing Committee Busto J. busto@cppm.in2p3.frGiomataris I. ioa@hep.saclay.cea.fr (chairman) Colas P. paul.colas@cea.frGorodetzky Ph. philippe.gorodetzky@cern.ch Coudray Lydia (secretary)Irastorza I.G. Igor.Irastorza@cern.ch Fauvel Patricia (secretary)Vuilleumier J-L. jean-Luc.vuilleumier@unine.ch

Synthesis and crystal structure of new K and Rb selenido/tellurido ferrate cluster compounds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stueble, Pirmin; Berroth, Angela; Roehr, Caroline [Freiburg Univ. (Germany). Inst. fuer Anorganische und Analytische Chemie

2016-08-01

In the course of a systematic study of alkali iron chalcogenido salts containing clusters [Fe{sub 4}Q{sub 8}] a series of new mixed-valent potassium and rubidium selenido and tellurido ferrates(II/III) was synthesized by carefully heating the pure elements enclosed in sample tubes under an argon atmosphere up to maximum temperatures of 800-900 C. Their crystal structures have been determined by means of single crystal X-ray diffraction. The mixed-valent Fe{sup II/III} tellurido ferrates A{sub 7}[Fe{sub 4}Te{sub 8}] form three different structure types. All structures contain tetramers of four edge sharing [FeTe{sub 4}] tetrahedra, which are connected by common edges to form only slightly distorted tetrahedral [Fe{sub 4}Te{sub 8}]{sup 7-} anions ('stella quadrangula') with a [Fe{sub 4}Te{sub 4}] cubane core. In all cases, these anions are surrounded by 26 alkali cations, which are located at the eight corners and the midpoints of the six faces and 12 edges of a cube. The three crystal structures can thus be described by three different packings of cuboid moieties: The monoclinic rubidium compound Rb{sub 7}[Fe{sub 4}Te{sub 8}] (space group C2/c, a = 2000.16(7), b = 897.79(3), c = 1768.12(6) pm, β = 117.4995(10) , Z = 4, R1 = 0.0296) is isotypic to the known cesium tellurido and sulfido ferrates Cs{sub 7}[Fe{sub 4}(S/Te){sub 8}]. Depending on the temperature, K{sub 7}[Fe{sub 4}Te{sub 8}] forms two different but closely related new structure types: The tetragonal r.t. modification (space group P4{sub 2}/nmc, a = 1222.25(14), c = 872.1(2) pm, Z = 2, R1 = 0.0583) crystallizes in a supergroup of the orthorhombic l.t. (100 K) form (space group Pbcn, a = 1715.5, b = 866.76(3), c = 1715.50(7) pm, Z = 4, R1 = 0.0160). In all structures, the cluster centered cubes are stacked to form columns along the short (∼ 870 pm) axis. These columns are themselves densely packed with 4 (both K compounds) and 6 (A = Rb) adjacent face-sharing columns. According to these

Thermospheric density and satellite drag modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Mehta, Piyush Mukesh

GRACE satellites. Moving toward accurate atmospheric models and absolute densities requires physics based models for CD. Closed-form solutions of CD have been developed and exist for a handful of simple geometries (flat plate, sphere, and cylinder). However, for complex geometries, the Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method is an important tool for developing CD models. DSMC is computationally intensive and real-time simulations for CD are not feasible. Therefore, parameterized models for CD are required. Modeling CD for an RSO requires knowledge of the gas-surface interaction (GSI) that defines the manner in which the atmospheric particles exchange momentum and energy with the surface. The momentum and energy exchange is further influenced by likely adsorption of atomic oxygen that may partially or completely cover the surface. An important parameter that characterizes the GSI is the energy accommodation coefficient, α. An innovative and state-of-the-art technique of developing parameterized drag coefficient models is presented and validated using the GRACE satellite. The effect of gas-surface interactions on physical drag coefficients is examined. An attempt to reveal the nature of gas-surface interactions at altitudes above 500 km is made using the STELLA satellite. A model that can accurately estimate CD has the potential to: (i) reduce the sources of uncertainty in the drag model, (ii) improve density estimates by resolving time-varying biases and moving toward absolute densities, and (iii) increase data sources for density estimation by allowing for the use of a wide range of RSOs as information sources. Results from this work have the potential to significantly improve the accuracy of conjunction analysis and SSA.

Homenaje al Profesor Académico Juan Di Doménico.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Vergara Támara

2004-03-01

Nápoles en 1924 donde completó su bachillerato Académico en el Liceo Umberto 1. Estudió medicina desde 1931 y se graduó en 1937. En 1938 aprobó los exámenes estatales para ejercer la medicina en Italia.

Casado con Carmen Buraglia Stella (1947-1992. Sus hijos: Juan Francisco, Cirujano y Claudio Maurizio, Arquitecto, constructor. Sus nietos: Stefano, Eric, Claudia y Valeria.
Viajó a Estados Unidos, se especializó en Cirugía General. Internado Rotatorio en el Merey Hospital Davenport, lowa, 1939-1940. Se matriculó en un Curso de Cirugía General en el Cook County Graduate School of Medicine, 1939-1941 Yen la Mayo Clinic de Rochester, Minnesota. Asistió además al Columbus Hospital de New York y al Charity Hospital de New Orleans...

Advancements in near real time mapping of earthquake and rainfall induced landslides in the Avcilar Peninsula, Marmara Region

Science.gov (United States)

Coccia, Stella

2014-05-01

Stella COCCIA (1), Fiona THEOLEYRE (1), Pascal BIGARRE(1) , Semih ERGINTAV(2), Oguz OZEL(3) and Serdar ÖZALAYBEY(4) (1) National Institute of Industrial Environment and Risks (INERIS) Nancy, France, (2) Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute (KOERI), Istanbul, Turkey, (3) Istanbul University (IU), Istanbul, Turkey, (4) TUBITAK MAM, Istanbul, Turkey The European Project MARsite (http://marsite.eu/), started in 2012 and leaded by the KOERI, aims to improve seismic risk evaluation and preparedness to face the next dreadful large event expected for the next three decades. MARsite is thus expected to move a "step forward" the most advanced monitoring technologies, and offering promising open databases to the worldwide scientific community in the frame of other European environmental large-scale infrastructures, such as EPOS (http://www.epos-eu.org/ ). Among the 11 work packages (WP), the main aim of the WP6 is to study seismically-induced landslide hazard, by using and improving observing and monitoring systems in geological, hydrogeotechnical and seismic onshore and offshore areas. One of the WP6 specific study area is the Avcilar Peninsula, situated between Kucukcekmece and Buyukcekmece Lakes in the north-west of the region of Marmara. There, more than 400 landslides are located. According to geological and geotechnical investigations and studies, soil movements of this area are related to underground water and pore pressure changes, seismic forces arising after earthquakes and decreasing sliding strength in fissured and heavily consolidated clays. The WP6 includes various tasks and one of these works on a methodology to develop a dynamic system to create combined earthquake and rainfall induced landslides hazard maps at near real time and automatically. This innovative system could be used to improve the prevention strategy as well as in disaster management and relief operations. Base on literature review a dynamic GIS platform is used to combine

Bringing Water into an Integrated Assessment Framework

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Izaurralde, Roberto C.; Thomson, Allison M.; Sands, Ronald; Pitcher, Hugh M.

2010-11-30

through The Dalles dam. Water also enters the Columbia River via runoff from land. The model runs on a monthly timescale to account for the impact of seasonal variations of climate, streamflows, and water uses. Data for the model prototype were obtained from national databases and ecosystem model results. The WPM can be run from three sources: 1) directly from STELLA, 2) with the isee Player®, or 3) the web version of WPM constructed with NetSim® software. When running any of these three versions, the user is presented a screen with a series of buttons, graphs, and a table. Two of the buttons provide the user with background and instructions on how to run the model. Currently, there are five types of scenarios that can be manipulated alone or in combination using the Sliding Input Devices: 1) interannual variability (e.g., El Niño), 2) climate change, 3) salmon policy, 4) future population, and 5) biodiesel production. Overall, the WPM captured the effects of streamflow conditions on hydropower production. Under La Niña conditions, more hydropower is available during all months of the year, with a substantially higher availability during spring and summer. Under El Niño conditions, hydropower would be reduced, with a total decline of 15% from normal weather conditions over the year. A policy of flow augmentation to facilitate the spring migration of smolts to the ocean would also reduce hydropower supply. Modeled hydropower generation was 23% greater than the 81 TWh reported in the 1995 U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) database. The modeling capability presented here contains the essential features to conduct basin-scale analyses of water allocation under current and future climates. Due to its underlying data structure iv and conceptual foundation, the WPM should be appropriate to conduct IA modeling at national and global scales.

FOREWORD: 3rd International Workshop on New Computational Methods for Inverse Problems (NCMIP 2013)

Science.gov (United States)

Blanc-Féraud, Laure; Joubert, Pierre-Yves

2013-10-01

Pastorino, DIBE, University of Genoa, Italy Christian Rey, LMT, ENS Cachan, CNRS, France Simon Setzer, Saarland University, Germany Cedric Vonesch, EPFL, Switzerland Local chair Sophie Abriet, SATIE Laboratory, ENS Cachan, France Béatrice Bacquet, SATIE Laboratory, ENS Cachan, France Lydia Matijevic, LMT Laboratory, ENS Cachan France Invited speakers Jérôme Idier, IRCCyN (UMR CNRS 6597), Ecole Centrale de Nantes, France Massimo Fornasier, Faculty of Mathematics, Technical University of Munich, Germany Matthias Fink, Institut Langevin, ESPCI, Université Paris Diderot, France

Філософсько-теоретичні аспекти валеології / Philosophical and theoretical aspects of valeology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Потапова Лідія

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Potapova Lidiya. Philosophical and theoretical aspects of valeology This article deals with the philosophical and anthropological dimentions ofvaleology in a global spiritual and ecological crisis. Deterioration of the human’s health is the manifestation of this. Valeology as science attracts more attentionin this context. Solving this problem using philosophical means, there are used general scientific and practical finds, which are represented by valeology as integral discipline.Key words: valeology, valeological philosophy, ecology, anthropology, health.Potapova Lydia. LES ASPECTS PHILO- SOPHIQUES ET THEORIQUES DE LA VALEOLOGIE. Dans l'article s’agit de l’étude philosophique et anthropologique des mesures valéologies dans l'environnement mondial et spirituel qui soit une des manifestations de la crise écologique ce qui amène à la détérioration de la santé humaine. Dans ce contexte, on a attiré plus d'attention à la valéologie en tant que science. En résolvant ce problème par des moyens philosophiques on a pleinement utilisé les trouvailles scientifiques et pratiques de la valéologie en tant que discipline jeune. Mots-clés: valéologie, vision du monde du poin de vue valéologique, l'environnement, l'anthropologie, la santé. Потапова Лідія. ФІЛОСОФСЬКО-ТЕОРЕТИЧНІ АСПЕКТИ ВАЛЕОЛОГІЇ У статті досліджено філософсько-антропологічні виміри валеології в умовах глобальної духовно-екологічної кризи, одним із проявів якої є погіршення здоров’я людства. У цьому контексті привертає більше уваги валеологія як наука. Розв’язуючи цю проблему філософськими засобами, у повній мірі використовуються �

TYCHO Brahe's Empiric Methods, His Instruments, His Sudden Escape from Denmark and a New Theory About His Death

Science.gov (United States)

Thykier, C.

1992-07-01

Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) was born a noble being, a son of Otto Brahe, and a member of the Royal Danish Council. Very early he developed a great interest in science and especially astronomy. In 1575 Tycho visited the learned Prince Wilhelm II in Kassel. Here he was inspired by the famous instrument maker Burgi to build new precise astronomical instruments, and on the recommendation of Wilhelm King Frederic II of Denmark was given the island Hven (which at that time belonged to Denmark) as an entailed estate. At 26 years old, Tycho became famous for his work DE NOVA STELLA on the supernova that brightened up in 1572, and since this phenomenon kept its position fixed among the stars, it immediately invalidated the Aristotelian dogma of the invariability of the fixed-star world. In 1577 Tycho observed the great comet and followed its celestial motion by means of a quadrant and a sextant. He then came to the conclusion that the comet orbit moved far out among the planets, in contradiction to the Aristotelian dogma of the crystal spheres for the planets. However, Tycho's great contribution to science was his construction of the observatory buildings Uraniborg and Stjerneborg ("Star Castle") with their equipment of ancient sighting instruments and his use of these instruments without telescopes for observations of the planets over a period of almost 20 years. Tycho's work is collected in 15 volumes, OPERA OMNIA by J. L. E. Dreyer. Tycho also mapped Hven correctly and he triangulated both sides of Oresund relative to Hven. When Tycho moved to Prague in 1599 he lived there for a couple of years and met Kepler who became his assistant and collaborator. Kepler was the one who analyzed Tycho's material and derived the Keplerian laws for the motions of the planets. On this basis Newton derived the law of gravitation. Tycho Brahe has been considered the father of modern empirical science. In 1596 he was accused of negligence of his administrative duties and several other things

HCVerso1 and 2: faldaprevir with deleobuvir (BI 207127 and ribavirin for treatment-naïve patients with chronic hepatitis C virus genotype-1b infection

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Sarrazin C

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Christoph Sarrazin,1 Francesco Castelli,2 Pietro Andreone,3 Maria Buti,4 Massimo Colombo,5 Stanislas Pol,6 Filipe Calinas,7 Massimo Puoti,8 Antonio Olveira,9 Mitchell Shiffman,10 Jerry O Stern,11 George Kukolj,12 Michael Roehrle,13 Stella Aslanyan,11 Qiqi Deng,11 Richard Vinisko,11 Federico J Mensa,11 David R Nelson,14 on behalf of the HCVerso1 and 2 study groups 1Department of Internal Medicine 1, JW Goethe University Hospital, Frankfurt, Germany; 2Department of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, University of Brescia, Brescia, 3Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Università di Bologna and Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria, Policlinico Sant‘Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy; 4Department of Internal Medicine, Hospital Universitari Vall d’Hebron and CIBERehd del Instituto Carlos III, Barcelona, Spain; 5Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Fondazione IRCCS Cà Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy; 6University Paris Descartes, Department of Hepatology, Hospital Cochin, APHP and INSERM UMS-20, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France; 7Department of Gastroenterology, Centro Hospitalar de Lisboa Central, Lisbon, Portugal; 8Department of Infectious Diseases, AO Ospedale Niguarda Cà Granda, Milan, Italy; 9Liver Unit, Hospital Universitario La Paz, CIBERehd, Madrid, Spain; 10Liver Institute of Virginia, Bon Secours Health System, Richmond, VA, USA; 11Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Ridgefield, CT, USA; 12Boehringer Ingelheim Ltd/Ltée, Burlington, ON, Canada; 13Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG, Biberach, Germany; 14Clinical and Translational Science Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA Abstract: The interferon-free combination of once-daily faldaprevir 120 mg, twice-daily deleobuvir 600 mg, and weight-based ribavirin was evaluated in two Phase III studies (HCVerso1, HCVerso2 in hepatitis C virus genotype-1b-infected, treatment-naïve patients, including

3D modelling of the Austroalpine-Penninic collisional wedge of the NW Alps: dataset management and preliminary results

Science.gov (United States)

Monopoli, Bruno; Bistacchi, Andrea; Bertolo, Davide; Dal Piaz, Giovanni; Gouffon, Yves; Massironi, Matteo; Sartori, Mario; Vittorio Dal Piaz, Giorgio

2016-04-01

considered as a sort of pseudo-stratigraphy, since they are the oldest feature that can be traced continuously at the map scale. For this reason we have developed a set of attributes identifying the tectonic and lithological units (a "legend"), implemented both in the GIS database and in the 3D models, which at the same time is compatible with the data structure of 3D modelling packages like Move and Skua/Gocad, and allows tracing the complex hierarchic classification of the units mapped in the GIS. This allows for the almost automatic and consistent two-way transfer of data between the GIS and geomodelling environments. E.g. results of 3D modelling, which is based on input data originally stored in the GIS, will eventually be transferred back to the GIS. The results of this study, which are preliminarily presented here, will open new opportunities to study the collision- and subduction-related nappe architecture and kinematics with younger deformations removed, and will eventually lead (with additional studies) to a step-by-step retrodeformation supported by modern technologies, following the path traced by Argand at the beginning of the 20th century. Argand E. 1909. L'exploration géologique des Alpes pennines centrales. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat., 45, 217-276. Argand A. 1911. Les nappes de recouvrement des Alpes pennines et leurs prolongements structuraux. Mat. Carte Géol. Suisse, 31, 25. Argand A. 1916. Sur l'arc des Alpes occidentales. Eclogae Geol. Helv., 14, 145-191. Franchi S., Mattirolo E., Novarese V., Stella A. & Zaccagna D. 1908. Carta geologica delle Alpi Occidentali alla scala 1:400.000. Regio Ufficio Geologico, Roma. Gerlach H. 1869. Die Penninischen Alpen. N. Denkschr. Schweiz. Natf. Ges., 23, 132. Gerlach H. 1871. Das Suedwestliche Wallis. Beitraege Geol. Karte Schweiz, 9, 175. Giordano F. 1869. Sulla orografia e sulla geologica costituzione del Gran Cervino. Atti R. Acc. Sci. Torino, 4, 304-321.

Ecosystem's Modeling of Bhoj Wetland - A Base For Economic Valuation and Sustainable Management

Science.gov (United States)

Verma, M.; Bakshi, N.; Nair, R.

terms of productivity losses and health impacts? How feedback can be taken from these impacts to revise or develop management policies and to seek participation of stakeholders to check wet- land degradation or losses? What type of benefits accrues to people from this wetland? What is the willingness of the people to pay to conserve this important water body? Lake degradation is due to multiple causes hence lakeSs restoration requires multi- ple interventions. To suggest such interventions and above all their prioritizations, an 1 ecosystem model for the lake has been developed following the systemSs dynamics approach. The main objective of the Ecosystem Modeling of the wetland was to under- stand the changes in the hydrology of the wetland first on account of certain changes in the conditions of the surroundings such that valuation process can be followed with current and future scenarios of the lakes hydrology in hand. A sophisticated computer software called as STELLA was used for the modeling exercise. The model used wa- ter quality parameters to show the impact of flow of sewage on dissolved oxygen, bio-chemical oxygen demand, pH, total hardness, total alkalinity, bacterial count and growth of weeds. A base scenario has been created and various simulation runs have been performed for the pre and ongoing restoration activities for next 25 years so as to represent the health of the wetlandSs ecosystem. These scenarios have then been used in the valuation exercise to estimate the conservation value of the lake. Various valuation techniques like contingent valuation, production function approach, hedonic pricing and supply cost have been used to capture the economic values as perceived by different stakeholders. These scenarios and the valuation exercises further throw light on the prioritization of future policy intervention for sustainable management of this urban wetland. Key words: Ecosystem Services, Water Quality Parameters, EcosystemSs Modeling, Economic

Seven hundred years of peat formation recorded throughout a deep floating mire profile from Central Italy

Science.gov (United States)

Lobianco, Daniela; D'Orazio, Valeria; Miano, Teodoro; Zaccone, Claudio

2016-04-01

Floating mires are defined by the occurrence of emergent vegetation rooted in highly organic buoyant mats that rise and fall with changes in water level. Islands floating and moving on a lake naturally were already described by Pliny the Elder in his Naturalis historia almost two millennia ago. Actually, he devoted a whole chapter of Naturalis historia to "Of Islands Ever Floating and Swimming", reporting how certain isles were always waving and never stood still. The status of "flotant" has been defined transitory; in fact, these small isles often disappear, in most of the cases because of a transition from floating island to firm land during decades is likely to happen. That is why most of the floating islands described by Pliny the Elder (e.g., Lacus Fundanus, Lacus Cutiliensis, Lacus Mutinensis, Lacus Statoniensis, Lacus Tarquiniensis, Lydia Calaminae, Lacus Vadimonis) do not exist anymore. In the present study, peat formation and organic matter evolution were investigated in order to understand how these peculiar environments form, and how stable actually they are. In fact, it is hoped that peat-forming floating mires could provide an exceptional tool for environmental studies, since much of their evolution, as well as the changes of the surrounding areas, is recorded in their peat deposits. A complete, 4-m deep peat core was collected in July 2012 from the floating island of Posta Fibreno, a relic mire in the Central Italy. This floating island has a diameter of ca. 30 m, a submerged thickness of about 3 m, and the vegetation is organized in concentric belts, from the Carex paniculata palisade to the Sphagnum centre. Here, some of the southernmost Italian populations of Sphagnum palustre occur. The 14C age dating of organic sediments isolated from the sample at 385 cm of depth revealed that the island formed ca. 700 yrs ago (620±30 yr BP). The top 100 cm, consisting almost exclusively of Sphagnum mosses, show a very low bulk density (avg., 0.03±0.01 g cm-3

Book Reviews

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Redactie KITLV

2001-07-01

, Claudette M. Williams, Charcoal and cinnamon: The politics of color in Spanish Caribbean literature. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2000. xii + 174 pp. -Nicole Roberts, Marie Ramos Rosado, La mujer negra en la literatura puertorriqueña: Cuentística de los setenta: (Luis Rafael Sánchez, Carmelo Rodríguez Torres, Rosario Ferré y Ana Lydia Vega. San Juan: Ed. de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, Ed. Cultural, and Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña, 1999. xxiv + 397 pp. -William W. Megenney, John H. McWhorter, The missing Spanish Creoles: Recovering the birth of plantation contact languages. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2000. xi + 281 pp. -Robert Chaudenson, Chris Corne, From French to Creole: The development of New Vernaculars in the French colonial world. London: University of Westminster Press, 1999. x + 263 pp.

Differentiation of primordial germ cells from induced pluripotent stem cells of primary ovarian insufficiency.

Science.gov (United States)

Leng, Lizhi; Tan, Yueqiu; Gong, Fei; Hu, Liang; Ouyang, Qi; Zhao, Yan; Lu, Guangxiu; Lin, Ge

2015-03-01

, POI2-iPS-V.1 and hEF-iPS-V.1 produced green fluorescent cells in the differentiated cultures, and the percentage of GFP-positive cells increased over the 12 days of differentiation to a maximum of 6.9 ± 0.33%, 5.3 ± 0.57% and 8.5 ± 0.29%, respectively, of the total cell population. Immunohistochemical analysis confirmed that endogenous VASA was enriched in the GFP-positive cells. Quantitative reverse transcription-PCR revealed significantly higher expression of germ cell markers [PR domain containing 1, with ZNF domain (PRDM1, BLIMP1), developmental pluripotency-associated 3 (DPPA3, STELLA), deleted in azoospermia-like (DAZL), and VASA (DDX4)] in GFP-positive cells than in GFP-negative cells. Moreover, the GFP-positive cells from POI-iPSCs had reduced expression of the family with sequence similarity 122C (FAM122C), inhibitor of kappa light polypeptide gene enhancer in B-cells, kinase gamma (IKBKG), and RNA binding motif protein, X-linked (RBMX), genes located in the deleted region of the X chromosome and that are highly expressed in differentiated germ cells, compared with cells from normal iPSCs. Gene expression profiling indicated that the germ cells differentiated from POI-iPSCs were pre-meiotic. Therefore, how the differentiated primordial germ cells could progress further to meiosis and form follicles remains to be determined in the study of POI. Our results might provide an in vitro model for studying germ cell development in patients with POI. This work was supported by grants from the Major State Basic Research Development Program of China (No. 2012CB944901), the National Science Foundation of China (No. 81222007 and 81471432), the Program for New Century Excellent Talents in University and the Fundamental Research Funds for Central Universities (No. 721500003). The authors have no competing interests to declare. Not applicable. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology

Kaarel Irdi repertuaaripoliitilised vaated Vanemuise teatri juhina. Kaarel Ird’s Repertoire Policy as Manager of the Vanemuine Theatre

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Jaak Viller

2012-04-01

Full Text Available This article focuses on the meaning of ’repertoire policy’, which in a broader sense usually means the conformity of someone’s creative activities with their main target groups and the interests and expectations of these target groups. Usually, factors inside the theatre also influence repertoire policy (such as contemporary and classical texts, the relationship between local and foreign material, as well as the consideration of the artistic interests and abilities of the directors and actors involved. When analysing the Vanemuine Theatre and its long-standing manager Kaarel Ird (at Vanemuine during the years 1940–1986, a certain aspect stemming from the ideological doctrine of the totalitarian state should be taken into account: the mandatory quota of Soviet drama works (of the Russian and other Soviet nations written after the revolution of 1917, which had to be no less than two-thirds of the plays staged. One of Ird’s more distinguishable accomplishments in the formation of repertoire policy is the rehabilitation of classical Estonian drama and its legacy, which had been ostracised from the stage during the years following the war (1944–1955. Ird justified this with numerous performances and articles as well as in the choice of repertoire at the Vanemuine Theatre, which was very well received by the growing audience. Ird’s own best directed works were based on the legacy of classic Estonian drama (Lydia Koidula, Oskar Luts and others. The other tendency in Ird’s repertoire policy is the attention paid to the Estonian contemporary drama. His role in enthusing writers to create contributions for the drama genre was remarkable, as well as the care taken in order to make their plays reach the stage at Vanemuine Theatre. Something that should be pointed out in Ird’s favour is his explanation – which at the time was not at all self-evident – of the repertoire to the supervisory organs: that contemporary Estonian dramas ought

The Contacts of the Hittites with the Aegean Peoples

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Mladen Horvat

2003-07-01

Full Text Available id the Hittites, a landlocked nation from central Anatolia, have any contacts with the Aegean region and its peoples? This has been a hotly contested issue ever since 1924, when E. Forrer claimed to have discovered a reference to Homeric Greeks in Hittite texts mentioning a country called Ahhiyawa. Almost as soon as the theory appeared, it was refuted by many prominent Hittitologists, most notably F. Sommer and A. Goetze, who claimed Ahhiyawa was just one of the Anatolian principalities. But there were also those who concurred with Forrer's claims - F. Schachermeyer and G. L. Huxley. Some scholars later propounded their own theories about the location of Ahhiyawa, placing it in the area of the Troad or Thrace. Recent scholarship mostly agrees with Guterbock that Ahhiyawa must have had some connection with the Mycenaeans, but not all have been persuaded. There are several Hittite documents in which Ahhiyawa appears. The earliest of there is the so-called Indictment of Madduwata. It dates to the beginning of the 14''' century B. C. and recounts Hittite dealings with a certain Madduwata, forced to flee his country by Attarsiya, whom the Hittites called Man of Ahhiya(wa. Madduwata was installed as a Hittite vassal ruler somewhere in southwestern Anatolia; however, he proved to be an ungrateful and overambitious person, who caused serious trouble for his overlord by attacking Hittite possessions in what appears to have been the area of classical Lycia and Caria. Later he even invaded Cyprus in alliance with his former enemy Attarsiya. The next reference to Ahhiyawa comes from the time of the Hittite king Mursilli, who reigned in the last quarter of the 14''' century B. C. He conquered the country of Arzawa, which lay in the area of classical Lydia, with its capital Apasa (classical Ephesus. Relying on the king of Ahhiyawa, it engaged in hostilities against the Hittites and incited the land of Millawanda (classical Miletus to rebellion, but was

Cannibal Stars Cause Giant Explosions in Fornax Cluster Galaxy

Science.gov (United States)

2000-07-01

The VLT Observes Most Remote Novae Ever Seen About 70 million years ago, when dinosaurs were still walking on the Earth, a series of violent thermo-nuclear explosions took place in a distant galaxy. After a very long travel across vast reaches of virtually empty space (70 million light-years, or ~ 7 x 10 20 km), dim light carrying the message about these events has finally reached us. It was recorded by the ESO Very Large Telescope (VLT) at the Paranal Observatory (Chile) during an observing programme by a group of Italian astronomers [1]. The subsequent analysis has shown that the observers witnessed the most distant nova outbursts ever seen . They were caused by "stellar cannibalism" in binary systems in which one relatively cool star loses matter to its smaller and hotter companion. An instability results that leads to the ignition of a "hydrogen bomb" on the surface of the receiving star. The "Stella Nova" Phenomenon A stellar outburst of the type now observed with the VLT is referred to as a "Stella Nova" ("new star" in Latin), or just "Nova" . Novae caused by explosions in binary stars in our home galaxy, the Milky Way system, are relatively frequent and about every second or third year one of them is bright enough to be easily visible with the naked eye. For our ancestors, who had no means to see the faint binary star before the explosion, it looked as if a new star had been born in the sky, hence the name. The most common nova explosion occurs in a binary stellar system in which a white dwarf (a very dense and hot, compact star with a mass comparable to that of the Sun and a size like the Earth) accretes hydrogen from a cooler and larger red dwarf star [2]. As the hydrogen collects on the surface of the white dwarf star, it becomes progressively hotter until a thermonuclear explosion is ignited at the bottom of the collected gas. A huge amount of energy is released and causes a million-fold increase in the brightness of the binary system within a few hours

Book Reviews

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Redactie KITLV

1997-01-01

NJ: Africa World Press, 1993. xxv + 115 pp. -Sandra Burr, Gretchen Gerzina, Black London: Life before emancipation. New Brunswick NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1995. xii + 244 pp. -Carlene J. Edie, Trevor Munroe, The cold war and the Jamaican Left 1950-1955: Reopening the files. Kingston: Kingston Publishers, 1992. xii + 242 pp. -Carlene J. Edie, David Panton, Jamaica's Michael Manley: The great transformation (1972-92. Kingston: Kingston Publishers, 1993. xx + 225 pp. -Percy C. Hintzen, Cary Fraser, Ambivalent anti-colonialism: The United States and the genesis of West Indian independence, 1940-1964. Westport CT: Greenwood, 1994. vii + 233 pp. -Anthony J. Payne, Carlene J. Edie, Democracy in the Caribbean: Myths and realities. Westport CT: Praeger, 1994. xvi + 296 pp. -Alma H. Young, Jean Grugel, Politics and development in the Caribbean basin: Central America and the Caribbean in the New World Order. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1995. xii + 270 pp. -Alma H. Young, Douglas G. Lockhart ,The development process in small island states. London: Routledge, 1993. xv + 275 pp., David Drakakis-Smith, John Schembri (eds -Virginia Heyer Young, José Solis, Public school reform in Puerto Rico: Sustaining colonial models of development. Westport CT: Greenwood Press, 1994. x + 171 pp. -Carolyn Cooper, Christian Habekost, Verbal Riddim: The politics and aesthetics of African-Caribbean Dub poetry. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 1993. vii + 262 pp. -Clarisse Zimra, Jaqueline Leiner, Aimé Césaire: Le terreau primordial. Tübingen: Gunter Narr Verlag, 1993. 175 pp. -Clarisse Zimra, Abiola Írélé, Aimé Césaire: Cahier d'un retour au pays natal. With introduction, commentary and notes. Abiola Írélé. Ibadan: New Horn Press, 1994. 158 pp. -Alvina Ruprecht, Stella Algoo-Baksh, Austin C. Clarke: A biography. Barbados: The Press - University of the West Indies; Toronto: ECW Press, 1994. 234 pp. -Sue N. Greene, Glyne A. Griffith, Deconstruction, imperialism and the West Indian novel

Deep Sky Diving with the ESO New Technology Telescope

Science.gov (United States)

1998-01-01

Padova, Italy), Luiz da Costa (ESO), Eiichi Egami (MPI Extraterrestrial Physics, Garching, Germany), Adriano Fontana (Rome Observatory, Italy), Bernard Fort (Paris Observatory, France), Laurent Gautret (Paris Observatory, France), Emanuele Giallongo (Rome Observatory, Italy), Roberto Gilmozzi, Richard N.Hook and Bruno Leibundgut (ESO), Yannick Mellier and Patrick Petitjean (IAP, Paris, France), Alvio Renzini, Sandra Savaglio and Peter Shaver (ESO), Stella Seitz (Munich Observatory, Germany) and Lin Yan (ESO). [2]. The photometric redshift method allows to determine an approximate distance of a distant galaxy by measuring its colour, i.e., its relative brightness (magnitude) in different wavebands. It is based on the proportionality between the distance of a galaxy and its recession velocity (the Hubble law). The higher the velocity, the more its emission will be shifted towards longer wavelengths and the redder is the colour. Recent investigations of galaxies seen in the Hubble Deep Field have shown that the redshifts (and thus distances) found by this method are quite accurate in most cases. How to obtain ESO Press Information ESO Press Information is made available on the World-Wide Web (URL: http://www.eso.org ). ESO Press Photos may be reproduced, if credit is given to the European Southern Observatory.

The Dark Side of Nature: the Crime was Almost Perfect

Science.gov (United States)

2006-12-01

Astrofisico di Arcetri, Italy), Guido Chincarini (INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera & Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, Italy), Nino Panagia (Space Telescope Science Institute, USA), Gianpiero Tagliaferri, Dino Fugazza, Sergio Campana, Stefano Covino, and Paolo D'Avanzo (INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera, Italy), Daniele Malesani (SISSA/ISAS, Italy and Dark Cosmology Centre, Copenhagen), Vincenzo Testa, L. Angelo Antonelli, Silvia Piranomonte, and Luigi Stella (INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, Italy), Vanessa Mangano (INAF/IASF Palermo, Italy), Kevin Hurley (University of California, Berkeley, USA), I. Felix Mirabel (ESO), and Leonardo J. Pellizza (Instituto de Astronomia y Fisica del Espacio). The Danish-led team is composed of Johan P. U. Fynbo, Darach Watson, Christina C. Thöne, Tamara M. Davis, Jens Hjorth, José Mará Castro Cerón, Brian L. Jensen, Maximilian D. Stritzinger, and Dong Xu (Dark Cosmology Centre, University of Copenhagen, Denmark), Jesper Sollerman (Dark Cosmology Centre and Department of Astronomy, Stockholm University, Sweden), Uffe G. Jørgensen, Tobias C. Hinse, and Kristian G. Woller (Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen), Joshua S. Bloom, Daniel Kocevski, Daniel Perley (Department of Astronomy, University of California at Berkeley, USA), Páll Jakobsson (Centre for Astrophysics Research, University of Hertfordshire, UK), John F. Graham and Andrew S. Fruchter (Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, USA), David Bersier (Astrophysics Research Institute, Liverpool John Moores University, UK), Lisa Kewley (University of Hawaii, Institute of Astronomy, USA), Arnaud Cassan and Marta Zub (Astronomisches Rechen-Institut, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg, Germany), Suzanne Foley (School of Physics, University College Dublin, Ireland), Javier Gorosabel (Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia, Granada, Spain), Keith D. Horne (SUPA Physics/Astronomy, University of St Andrews, Scotland, UK), Sylvio

O PDI da UFT: instrumento burocrático ou instrumento de gestão? Uma breve análise

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Míriam Lucas da Silva Parente

2015-12-01

Nacional de Engenharia de Produção. Salvador: 2001 Salvador: Faculdade de Tecnologia e Ciências, 2001. Disponível em: . Acesso em: 11.08.2014. FILIPAK, Sirley Terezinha. Sustentabilidade acadêmica e o plano de desenvolvimento institucional. 2011. Tese de doutorado (Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação - Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná. Curitiba, 2011. FRANCISCO, Thiago Henrique Almino. Análise das ações que confirmam a relação entre o IGC e o PDI em Faculdades Isoladas no sul de Santa Catarina. Dissertação Mestrado Profissionalizante em Administração Universitária da Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina. Florianópolis. 2012. GELBCKE, F., MATOS, E., et al. Planejamento estratégico participativo: um espaço para a conquista da cidadania profissional. Revista Texto Contexto Enfermagem. Florianópolis, 2006. Disponível em: Acesso em: 11 de ago. 2014. MEYER JR., Victor. Novo Contexto e as Habilidades do Administrador Universitário. In: MEYER JR., Victor; MURPHY, J. Patrick (Org.. Dinossauros, gazelas e tigres: novas abordagens da administração universitária. 2ª ed. ampliada. Florianópolis: Insular, 2003. OSBORNE, David; GAEBLER, Ted. Reinventando o governo: como o espírito empreendedor está transformando o setor público. Brasília: MH Comunicação, 1994. PADILHA, R. P. Planejamento dialógico: como construir o projeto político-pedagógico da escola. São Paulo: Cortez; Instituto Paulo Freire, 2001.  SANTOS, Jane Lúcia Silva; et al. Modelo de planejamento estratégico em uma universidade Pública Brasileira: Desenvolvimento e Implementação na Universidade Federal de Alagoas. Florianópolis: 2009. Disponível em: Acesso em: 11 ago. 2014. SEGENREICH, Stella C. D. O PDI como referente para avaliação de instituições de educação superior: lições de uma experiência. Ensaio: Aval. Políticas Públicas Educacionais, v.13, nº 47. Rio de Janeiro, 2005. SGUISSARDI, V. Modelo da expansão da educação superior no Brasil

A systematic search for new X-ray pulsators in ROSAT fields

Science.gov (United States)

Israel, G. L.

1996-10-01

number greatly exceeds the number of serendipitous X-ray sources previously known and catalogued in the Einstein and EXOSAT (about 6000) databases. In this thesis work, based on the results and products contained in the WGA catalogue, we have selected a sample of X-ray sources the light curves of which contained enough photons to carry out a meaningful timing analysis. These light curves were then searched for periodic modulations in a systematic way and a catalogue of candidate X-ray pulsators was created for further detailed study, including optical and X-ray observations. The definition of the sample was based on the minimum number of source photons, 200, that is required to reach a given sensitivity in a search for periodic pulsations with a specified number of trial frequencies. The WGA catalogue contains about 23000 light curves with more than 200 photons. In such a sample, a number of X-ray sources is expected to possess periodic modulation resulting in a power spectrum peak(s). A recently developed technique (Israel & Stella 1996) aimed at the detection of coherent or quasi-coherent signals in presence of additional non-Poissonian noise components in the power spectrum was used and applied to the selected sample of 23000 WGA light curves. The technique was modified and upgraded during this thesis work to take into account the timing problems specific to the ROSAT PSPC data. The ROSAT orbital period (96min) and the oscillations in the pointing direction (402s, ``wobble'') during the observations carried out with the PSPC detector were extensively investigated and, when possible, their effects on the search for periodicity minimised. The timing analysis of the 23000 light curves was performed by means of these techniques in a systematic and automated fashion. Starting from the PSPC light curves a catalogue of pulsator candidates together with the peak and power spectrum parameters was produced. Two different search approaches were adopted: one to cover the largest

Systematic Changes in the Undergraduate Chemistry Curriculum Progam Award and Course and Curriculum Development Program Awards

Science.gov (United States)

1996-06-01

and molecules. The graphic images will be combined with interactive benchtop demonstrations and computer animations to produce dynamic visual instructional components (dynamic visualization modules, DVMs) for introductory chemistry courses. The existing instrumentation and modeling facilities required for the project are currently in place. Once developed the DVMs will be tested with approximately 4000 general chemistry students at Arizona State University and the Maricopa Community College system. There is a goal of national dissemination by a commercial publisher once the DVMs have been tested in the local environment. An Introductory Course in Modeling Dynamic Chemical and Ecological Systems. Joseph E. Earley Georgetown University DUE 9554932 99,996 An introductory course in modeling of dynamic systems, with special emphasis on chemical and ecological problems, will be developed. The target student population will be first- and second-year social science and humanities students, but upper division students and interested science majors will not be excluded. Rather than placing emphasis on mathematical methods and techniques used in modeling, attention will be centered on salient aspects of complex-system behavior as illustrated by models constructed using the commercially available software-package STELLA II. Relatively straightforward models dealing with chemical reactions will be used to introduce fundamental features of complex-system dynamics. Problems of ecological and demographic interest, at moderate level of difficulty, will then be covered. The origin and behavior of "deterministic chaos" will be treated using examples from both chemistry and ecology. In the last third of the course, students will work in small groups (or individually) developing their own models, each related to a specific problem of current interest, preferably in fields of the students' major academic interest. Opportunity will be provided for some outstanding students to use less "user